Unlocked

(spoiler free)

Previous ‘James Bond’ director, Michael Apted is back with new terrorism thriller ‘Unlocked’. Featuring an all star cast lead by Noomi Rapace could it be an engaging action flick or would it be a dull retread of similar films to have come before it?

The narrative follows Alice Racine (Rapace), a CIA interrogator, who is brought in on a new case sometime after a past case went south. The story isn’t all that interesting and it comes dangerously close to being boring on several occasions. Thankfully the writer & director clearly knew when things needed livened up as they always injected an action scene just when they were required. The action isn’t anything spectacular but there are some fun moments within these scenes. Overall the narrative has a few surprises but ultimately it’s quite predictable.

The strong cast certainly make the film more engaging than it probably should be. Rapace is good as the leading lady but she has been better, I’d put this down to the material rather than here performance though. Orlando Bloom pops up in a bizarre role which makes little sense for a bit too long. He does manage to add some comedy to the proceedings though. Toni Collette, Michael Douglas & John Malkovich all play government agents in relatively small roles. They all get their moments to shine but more of Collette could only have been a good thing. It’s Malkovich who manages to completely steal the show though. His no nonsense character was a joy to watch thanks to his really committed performance. 

I wouldn’t have been surprised if you hadn’t even heard of ‘Unlocked’ until now and I imagine this will stay the same for many even after it’s run in the cinema is complete. It’s a fine film, playing out like a forgettable episode of ’24’. The star-studded cast help it along and it’s satisfactory whilst watching but it’s nothing more than an average throwaway action flick.

Rating – 6/10

Question: What is your favourite film performance from Noomi Rapace?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)

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