Unhinged (2020)

One of the first films to be released in the cinema post-1st-lockdown, Unhinged follows a young mother who upsets an angry and fat Russell Crowe early on in the film by honking her horn at him when he doesn't move on at a green light. This proves to be a terrible mistake, as Russell Crowe reacts very badly. The audience already know this is an inadvisable reaction from the women, the opening couple of minutes of the film show Crowe walking to a house, smashing the door in with a hammer, and beating two people to death before setting the house on fire. We don't know the context, but we assume he is perhaps somewhat unhinged. (eh?). The opening credits follow, and they're very promising, titles cut with real life footage of mad road rage incidents and voice-over news reports, and the whole thing is set up well, even if you're just hoping for a 90 minute mad romp. Although you go with it for maybe half the film, the poor indecision from the characters leaves you cold and irritated, to the point where you end up wanting a climax that you're never going to get. It's a poor mans Falling Down (1993) and Michael Douglas' calm and collective 'D-Fens' makes for a much more dangerous and threatening central character, than Russell Crowe's overweight madman, who, although he has some legitimate quibbles with life, acts on them in a foolish and an ill-advised manner. 5.7/10