Rebel Ridge | Review

 2024. 131 mins. Directed by Jeremy Saulnier

Rebel Ridge follows the story of Terry Richmond (Aaron Pierre), an ex-Marine who is on his way to post bail for his cousin. Along the way he is stopped by two police officers who end up taking the cash he planned to use to bail out his cousin, as they believe it to be drug money. This puts Terry in a bind as he needed to get that money to the courthouse that day. When he is denied the ability to bail out his cousin, Terry attempts to file a police report against the officers who took his money. The chief of police (Don Johnson) for the small town gets involved and things escalate causing Terry to do whatever it takes to get his cousin out.

Director/writer Jeremy Saulnier has put together one hell of a movie here. With Saulnier directing and writing the script, his vision is really brought to life on screen. The combination of great camera work, stellar action sequences and great performances from the cast all work flawlessly because of Saulnier. He is able to make the story move and feel like a slow burn but constantly leaves you on the edge of your seat waiting to see what is going to happen next. Aside from a few moments where the story does start to lag a bit, Saulnier ramps the tension up and things start to move once again.

While this isn't a straight up action movie, the scenes that do involve some action are done incredibly well. These scenes are tightly shot, and you can really feel the intensity of the action. The choreography used for the hand-to-hand combat is some of the best seen on screen in quite some time. It all looks completely authentic and at the same time feels like something you would see in a summer blockbuster. Even though there are only a handful of action sequences they all stand out and really make you feel every hit and every gun shot.

The performances from the cast are all top notch. Aaron Pierre gives a star making performance as Terry. He has so much charisma and the way he carries himself playing this character really makes you root for him. This is one of the best star making performances we've seen in quite a while. Don Johnson works well as the antagonist and makes for a great foe to go up against Pierre. One of the biggest surprises is the character of Summer, played by AnnaSophia Robb. Her character is given a large portion of the second half of the movie and Robb puts in a fantastic performance. She and Pierre work extremely well together and they make for an unlikely pair that shares a good amount of chemistry.

In the end, Rebel Ridge is a tense and all-around fantastic movie. Jeremy Saulnier has once again put together another great story. From the beautiful cinematography to the well written script, it all comes together so well. Aaron Pierre has given the performance of his career, so far, and the rest of the cast does a great job supporting his performance.

Grade: B+

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