Unhinged

by Hans A. Carpenter
Release Date: August 21
Director: Derrick Borte
Starring: Russell Crowe,
Caren Pistorius,
and Gabriel Bateman
Mister Marquee Says:
The Movies Are Back!
Number: 3/5
In this thrilling but horrific documentary, a film crew follows Russell Crowe around the streets of Los Angeles as he lashes out violently at anyone and anything.
Okay, for real though, Crowe was born to play this role. Unhinged is the story of a woman who honks her horn at a truck not moving at a stop light and unwittingly becomes the target of a rage-filled killing spree.
Director Derrick Borte deserves a lot of credit for keeping the atmosphere tense, with Unhinged sometimes feeling on the verge of exploding much like our titular character. Russel Crowe, no doubt cast partially for his acting chops and partially for his reputation as a loose cannon, settles in nicely to the roll of Tom Cooper, a blue-collar version of Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker. He’s a man who feels belittled and wronged by the world and takes out that anger on a stranger for the slightest of transgressions.
Unhinged is a great premise, and one that hits close to home with incidents of road rage and violent outbursts becoming all too common. They always say you never know who is in the other car.
With a great setup, and great acting, Unhinged ultimately goes…nowhere. There’s too much gimmicky stuff with “Find my Phone” app tracking and convenient happenings for Cooper that make you scratch your head and really take away from the uncaged rage factor that drives the movie. Writer Carl Ellsworth has to do some real script gymnastics to explain away the lack of police.
Unhinged isn’t a bad “B” movie, but it’s really missing the spice to take it to the next level. Still, it’s an intense, entertaining thrill ride, and I’m just happy to have the silver screen back in my life.