Interrogation thrillers have held a special place amongpsychological thrillerssince the genre took root. Films likeZero Dark Thirty,Eye in the Sky, andThe Mauritanian, which border justice and morality, have given the subgenre prominence. Once in a while, however, the subgenre gives us films that swing hard and make us uncomfortable, like the 2010 filmUnthinkable.The film starsSamuel L. Jackson,Michael Sheen, andCarrie-Anne Mossand is directed byGregor Jordan(who directed the groundbreaking filmBuffalo Soldiers). It’s a film thatcontains extreme violence that is depicted both emotionally and graphically, and is not something you can casually recommend to a friend, at least not without a warning. Despite its star power, including therecently dethroned highest-grossing actor of all time,Unthinkableflew under the radar on release. Maybe it was too bleak, maybe too brutal, or maybe it just hit too close to home. Either way, it never had a fair shot, and now, 15 years later, it’s a good time to revisit it.
‘Unthinkable’ Is a Claustrophobic Thriller That Dares To Cross the Line
The film’s premise is straightforward. We open with Michael Sheen, who plays Yusuf, a former U.S. military man displaying hints of religious extremism. He declares in a taped confession that he has planted three nuclear bombs in major American cities and places then-undisclosed demands to be adhered to before defusing the bombs. He is immediately arrested and taken in for interrogation to reveal the locations of the bombs. His incarceration sets the core story into motion. As the time bomb ticks, there are two sides to the moral question about whether torture should be used as a means to extract information from suspects. “How far is too far when millions of lives are at stake?" Each subsequent scene in the film keeps provoking the audience.
Samuel L. Jackson plays a chilling government-sanctioned interrogator best known as “H.” He is the king of torture who faces Sheen’s Yusuf head-on. H puts Yusuf through things you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy. His methods are not onlyphysically excruciating but also psychologically draining.His interrogation is best summed up by his chilling line: “He has to believe I have no limits.” In one of the coldest scenes put to screen, he drags Yusuf’s wife into the interrogation room, forcing her to deliver psychologically tormenting lines to her husband (reminiscent ofJules' scathing monologue to Brett inPulp Fiction), before slitting her throat open with a dagger when he doesn’t get the information he’s looking for, all while their children await outside. Carrie-Anne Moss, portraying FBI Agent Helen Brody, is there to ensure things stay legal. They don’t. It is easy to question the creative choice to film most of the movie in a single location, but a closer look will appreciatethe claustrophobic feel it brings that makes it even more haunting.
The 65 Best Psychological Thrillers of All Time, Ranked
Movies that are guaranteed to get in your head.
Michael Sheen and Samuel L. Jackson Deserved Awards for their Performances in ‘Unthinkable’
Unthinkablehas its flaws, no doubt. For instance, one might question its plot, particularly what Yusuf’s motivation for surrendering to the authorities and his willingness to get tortured before giving his demands is, all when he could possibly achieve the same through the recorded tape and by giving the security agencies a hard time locating him. There is also the simplicity of Moss’ character as appearing only to serve as a moral compass (she is even used as a plot device in a scene in the third act). But strong performances from Sheen and Jackson ground the movie. When the film could have easily turned into a mere torture fest, their masterclass interpretation of the shifting power dynamics between their characters works magic. While Sheen’s Yusuf — chained to a chair nearly throughout the film’s run, enduring all manner of torture — is expected to be the vulnerable one with the full force of the law on his case, he’s rarely a passive victim. He refuses to yield and makes demands that frustrate even the calm H. In fact,the film doesn’t dictate which side is wrong or right, or even if those are the only options.
Jackson, on the other hand, plays H with the vigor of evil personified. But he is also intelligent and pragmatic, sometimes even making the idealistic FBI agent Helen Brody question her beliefs; but when he tells us about his past, we begin to understand him. He is in prison himself, his family not escaping the surveillance of the authorities he serves, and part of his brutality is his way of venting his frustration at life. All throughUnthinkable, the film’s characters engage in mind games that ask audiences to sit with the ugliest parts of their conscience.
Few films are as bold, intense, and confrontational asUnthinkable. Its plot may not be an out-of-the-box idea, but its understated performances and grim direction make it one of the most overlooked action thrillers of the 2010s. Once you’ve seen it, you will see what we mean.
Unthinkable
