Nerdly » ‘Rebel Ridge’ Review (Netflix)

01st Oct2024

‘Rebel Ridge’ Review (Netflix)

by James Rodrigues

Stars: Aaron Pierre, Don Johnson, AnnaSophia Robb, David Denman, Emory Cohen, Steve Zissis, Daniel H. Chung, Dana Lee | Written and Directed by Jeremy Saulnier

It has been a while since Jeremy Saulnier gifted audiences with a film. After the one-two punch of 2013’s tense Blue Ruin and 2015’s masterful Green Room, Saulnier was solidified as a director worth watching. Since then, he has made 2018’s Hold the Dark, and worked on season 3 of True Detective. With Rebel Ridge, the writer/director has delivered another work that shows why he remains one of the most exciting filmmakers working today.

The story opens with the sight of Terry Richmond (Aaron Pierre), a former Marine, cycling into the town of Shelby Springs. With Metallica blaring in his earbuds, this prominent character is shown to be singularly focused as he rides into town with $36,000 in cash, money intended to post bail for his cousin and be the start of them making an honest living. Before he knows what is happening, local police officers ram Terry off his bike and detain him, seizing his bag of cash.

With the help of courthouse clerk, Summer McBride (AnnaSophia Robb), Terry discovers that what the officers did was considered legal, and uncovers depths of corruption that lurk within Shelby Springs’ police force. His focus is on getting his cousin out of prison, so he attempts to reason with the officers through de-escalation tactics. Despite verbally appealing to the officers in a non-threatening manner, their hardheaded refusal to admit they were wrong leads to the situation escalating.

Front and centre of Rebel Ridge is Aaron Pierre, the man who played the memorably named Mid-Sized Sedan in M. Night Shyamalan’s Old. He brings alive the role with a soft-spoken intensity that is mixed with movie-star charisma, perfectly capturing Terry’s attempts to reason with the officers while standing up for himself. The simmering anger is palpable as his attempts fall on deaf ears, building the tension until a cathartic scene leads him to showcase what his role was in the Marines. If there is any justice, this role would get Pierre noticed and lead him to a fantastically fruitful career.

In a supporting role, AnnaSophia Robb is effective as Terry’s one ally within a town under the thumb of corruption. She offers help and support in his mission, while carrying her own past regrets that she wishes to atone for. In the antagonistic role, Don Johnson tremendously brings alive the corrupt police chief that fully knows the extent of corruption he is leading, while his shit-eating grin captures his satisfaction at knowing that he and his officers can get away with it.

Through it all, the slimy officers leaves viewers ecstatic at seeing their comeuppance delivered in full force. It becomes fascinating to see the police escalating things because, when it blows up in their face, every knock-back for these figures wearing Blue Lives Matter patches is satisfying to behold. Despite the 132-minute runtime, Saulnier crafts a taut piece of filmmaking from real-life issues that justifies its length in unbelievably tense and equally thrilling ways. Here’s hoping Rebel Ridge overcomes Netflix’s tendency to poorly market their original material, because this is an excellent work that deserves to be widely seen.