Unhinged

Already at the outset, Unhinged grabs the viewer's attention with a stark but incisive overview of the state of crime and society in the US, a land of unlimited possibilities but limited people. After a brief prologue and introduction to the characters, what follows is pure thriller action, where at times you just stare at the screen in disbelief and outrage, with pissed off thoughts running through your head, wondering if something like this is the order of the day (in America). Russell Crowe inhabits the role of a psychopathic asshole who needs really little to piss him off in a chillingly convincing way, and I was definitely not rooting for him and I wished him nothing but the worst possible ending. Whether Unhinged is a realistic reflection of American society I cannot judge, as I don't live there, but even if it is a universal image, I was indeed impressed. All I missed was perhaps a little more background on Russell's character. (09/13/2020)

This is exactly the type of movie I could imagine watching on a Sunday evening on TV in the absence of Russell Crowe, who is still an "A-list" actor. Without him, it wouldn’t work. However, he played the role of an angry, furious, and psychologically disturbed giant of a man who has nothing to lose excellently. When a woman honks at him, he sets off on a path of no return. Yes, the story is rather stupid, and the script doesn’t come up with any innovative ideas (the omnipresent absence of police forces, with a few exceptions, is glaring). Thus, the whole plot feels bland and stale. The film is lifted from mediocrity by two or maybe three aspects: Crowe’s excellent performance (yes, he overacts, but it fits the role), the gritty approach that is not afraid to go for bloodier moments (like the highway scene), and a simple but very effective soundtrack mainly based on booming and captivating tones. Don’t expect this film to be a sophisticated affair. Turn off your brain for a while and you’ll see it can entertain. I’d give it a 6.5/10. (11/01/2020)

Unhinged surprisingly and slowly builds up into a slasher flick. However, it is needlessly overwrought and implausible with illogical nonsense. Crowe might have been suited for the role if we didn’t know him as an A-list character actor. Getting used to him and appreciating his performance as a deranged psychopathic rapist and murderer is practically impossible, which is also due to the one-dimensionality of his character without any explanation of the reasons for his behaviour. In the context of the genre, Unhinged is a completely unnecessary film that drowns out its brainlessness with brutish violence. (01/03/2021)

An offended fatty against the impolite world… To be perfectly honest from the very start, without Oscar-winner Russell Crowe, this film would be complete trash. With Russell, who sets men on fire, kicks women and strangles children, it’s quite entertaining. Because it’s not too long, the film flows easily and I spent most of the time thinking up different alternative plots that would be more original. And asking questions… Couldn’t the mom have been less nice? Couldn’t Borte film the car chases dynamically and play around a bit with paranoia? Why the heck did Russell agree to do this? (10/23/2020)

A straightforwardly paced genre film that would like to stand alongside similarly focused cult films in the vein of Duel or The Hitcher, but it's too routine a see-it-and-forget-it B-movie for that. If it wasn't for the impressively disturbing Crowe, who pulls the whole thing off despite all the incongruities (and there are many) and the unlikeable clowns that the viewer is supposed to root for, it wouldn't even be worth paying attention to. PS: It is a pity that Hauer is no longer alive, there could have been a duet "how the Driver picks up the Hitchhiker". (11/18/2020)