Showtimes & Tickets Enter Zip Code:

UNKNOWN
Directed by: Simon Brand.
Produced by: Darby Parker, Rick Lashbrook, & John S. Schwartz.
Written by: Matthew Waynee.
Director of Photography: Steve Yedlin.
Edited by: Paul Trejo & Luis Carballar.
Music by: Angelo Milli.
Released by: IFC First Take.
Country of Origin: USA. 90 min. Not Rated.
With: Jim Caviezel, Greg Kinnear, Joe Pantoliano, Barry Pepper, Jeremy Sisto, Bridget Moynahan, & Peter Stormare.

One man (Jim Caviezel) wakes up in a dusty, ramshackle warehouse, can’t remember who he is or why he’s there, and sees four unconscious men he doesn’t recognize (one with his face bludgeoned by a shovel, one handcuffed to a railing and shot in the shoulder, another tied to a chair, and one that’s just unconscious). As he begins to discover the warehouse has been outfitted with high security doors, locks, and barred windows (none of which he can open), the others wake up. Their memories return in brief, unintelligible jolts, and they realize that some of them are hostages and some of them violent captors. Not one has a clue to which side he’s on and who he can trust.

They only know that two men were kidnapped and were being held for ransom before a canister of gas was opened and leveled the playing field by causing temporary amnesia in all five of them. They are also aware that the captors’ cohorts will be returning at dusk, so each one is motivated to work with the others to escape. The psychological tension here is so thick you can’t help but appreciate the complexity of the sticky situation. As clichéd as it is to say, I was on the edge of my seat trying to anticipate all the plot twists. But the real fun is in watching the agonizing insecurity that plagues the amnesiacs, who are aware of a combustible situation that could get them killed depending on who remembers their identity first.

Throughout all of this, the police work with the wife (Bridget Moynahan) of one of the kidnapped men to find her husband and his colleague. Unfortunately, Moynahan’s character is so melodramatic and tearful that her scenes are tedious (or so it seems in the beginning). Towards the last third of the film, there’s one moment that, at first, feels like filler. We find the forlorn wife sobbing and talking about her rich husband’s real estate with an officer who can barely contain his disinterest. It’s only when she talks about one summer home, in particular, that she loves and says, “You should see the sunset from there,” that we realize the significance of the mention of dusk; the captors will be returning soon and people are about to die.

Director Simon Brand’s history in music videos is an advantage here. He focuses on the details of objects with slow pans, and it’s clear he has a good grasp of color saturation and how to visually display mood, resulting in a creepy, claustrophobic feel that’s perfect for the story. And when violence happens, the quick shots that are often found in videos and cheesy horror movies add an enjoyably frightening jolt. Overall, the film’s a very strong debut for both Brand and screenwriter Matthew Waynee. Zachary Jones
November 3, 2006