Justthefacts

Steven Soderbergh, if you aren't in the know by now, has made such classics as Sex, Lies, & Videotape, Traffic, and the Ocean's 13 films. Throughout recent years, his talent at film making has only gotten better with films like Contagion, Side Effects, Che, and The Informant. You can immediately tell it has Soderbergh's prints from the lighting, to the meticulous, almost claustrophobic cinematography. His method with actors has to be impeccable because he never captures a lackluster performance. He took a hiatus after directing Side Effects in 2013, and the world lost a great auteur that day. Until Soderbergh came to his senses and decided to make Logan Lucky last year, a fast, roaring clever comedy that happens to be great. You can't keep a man with that many accolades away from a camera too long. & now this brings us to Unsane. Unsane tells the story of young woman who may or may not have had suicidal thoughts in the past, and so by her admitting her trauma to some so-called psychiatrist, her world starts to turn once they force her to be admitted to this mental facility against her will.

The marketing campaign really pushed on this being a psychological thriller which it is technically, but to me I was convinced this would be about some girl who creates illusions in her mind stuck in some ward. I really had no idea what the story was about. It's surprisingly very grounded, nothing abnormal or un-realistic as far as any paranormal or sci-fi horror stuff at play (which is another thing I sorta thought it might be coming into it). Claire Foy is pretty talented, never heard of her before this film. The film does start off being quite the horror show but something in the film also lurks beneath the surface and the whole film turns into a certain cat-&-mouse game towards the end. It also happens to be extremely ironic that this girl would be admitted to a facility with someone she does not want to be around or see. I can't explain any more than that but it felt a little far-fetched. If there's one thing I can say, it's that I never knew where it was headed. Also this movie's pretty known for it being shot an IPhone. For this being the first film completely shot on a phone is a tiny miracle, but throughout the movie the gimmick becomes a little warn out.

I have some reservations. The movie's not perfect. Some scenes dragged on for far too long. A particular actor in the 2nd and 3rd act OVERacts and becomes a chore to sit through. The IPhone camera work comes off pretty overbearing sometimes. Aside from a few quibbles, I walked away moderately satisfied. Far from Soderbergh's best. Hell, last years Logan Lucky is a far superior film. In terms of lingering thoughts though and getting beneath the skin in creeps, it succeeds very well. The absolute final shot is a little haunting. It loses and gains and loses again in credibility in the final act altogether, but it's a creepy little b-movie experiment that has more hits than losses. B

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