Rebel Ridge (2024), directed by Jeremy Saulnier, stars Aaron Pierre, Don Johnson, AnnaSophia Robb, Emory Cohen, David Denman, Zsane Jhe, C.J. LeBlanc, Steve Zissis, Dana Lee, and Daniel H. Chung. The film follows Terry Richmond (Pierre), an ex-marine who is stopped by small-town police on his way to post bail for his beloved cousin. Suspecting Terry’s bail money to be illegal drug money, the officers proceed to confiscate the cash. Although Terry is allowed to legally obtain his money, this doesn’t much help him. The entire reason Terry is going to bail out his cousin is because he is about to be transferred to a larger prison where many of the inmates intend to kill him. Desperate to save his cousin by retrieving the money, Terry wages a one-man war against the small-town police department led by corrupt police chief, Sandy Burnne (Johnson). 

Although I think Saulnier’s previous film Hold the Dark (2018) was a disappointment, I’ve always been a huge fan of his movie Green Room (2015). Thankfully, the experience of Rebel Ridge is much more similar to the latter than the former. There’s a palpable sense of stakes in each of his films, but this effort ups the ante. This is due to Aaron Pierre’s powerful lead performance, which immediately shoots him into the category of top-notch male actors. He has eyes that create a gaze so piercing, it almost breaks the fourth wall. This performance emotionally supports drama, tension, and action – it all feels like it means something because Pierre’s performance forces us to buy in wholeheartedly. 

Although Don Johnson doesn’t provide anything particularly new as the typical “corrupt police chief” character, he’s undeniably perfect casting on paper (though not quite “inspired”). Who really stood out to me were Emory Cohen and David Denman as the two white, male deputies who harass Terry at the beginning of the film. Initially, the script presents these characters as your typical “racist white cops from hell,” but then gradually and subtly sets these characters down two different paths. A film with this kind of subject matter can often become one-sided or frustratingly basic. This in turn makes the subject matter feel preachy and juvenile even if the core message is agreeable. In other words, if a film is going to explore a bloated subject such as police brutality/racism, it needs to dig deeper or be more comprehensive than what came before. Because of a tight, balanced script that features subversive genre choices, Rebel Ridge avoids feeling redundant. 

Plot subversion aside, the premise still feels a bit too similar to other action properties such as First Blood (1982) and Reacher (2022- ). It also features a visual style that’s somewhat cold and therefore a bit dull/boring. That being said, I do think this cold style supports the film’s realism, I just don’t know if it needed it. Although not perfect, the film constantly shoots for realism within its admittedly unrealistic premise. This includes a lack of music during intense sequences and the inclusion of the idea that oftentimes real human beings try to avoid killing (even if they’re ok with doing so). Saulnier’s direction feels confident and unique in the sense that the film succeeds in feeling dangerous/intense without realistically featuring too much violence. When the action does eventually kick in, it’s quick but satisfying because the tension is perfectly brewed. That being said, there were unfortunately still a few moments where the action became a bit too comic-book-esque. On top of this, the film’s exploration of racism sometimes feels goofily on-the-nose. For example, one character asks Terry about his cousin: “Drug Charges?” “Why would you assume that?” I get the sentiment here, but it feels like a basic delivery that I’ve seen 100 times and almost comes across as parody. 

Thankfully the film features a subversive climax that some will describe as “anticlimactic,” but it actually feels like the perfect ending in terms of realism and thematic balance. This ultimately supports a story about police brutality that feels smart, original, and unpretentious. 

Overall, although the film has a few glaring “roll your eyes” moments, the overall effect is something that feels balanced without feeling apathetic in its messaging. It smartly demonizes individual police officers as opposed to police as a whole, but still doesn’t shy away from the pain this causes their community intentional or otherwise. It’s not perfect, but it’s the best movie about police brutality that I’ve seen in awhile. It’s also just an effective crime triller/western on top of that. B+