THE GUILTY (REVIEW)

Dir. Antoine Fuqua

Reviewer. Martyn Wakefield

From director Antoine Fuqua something a little more subtle but no less terrifying. THE GUILTY is a tense and gripping thriller that follows a majority solo performance from Jake Gyllenhaal. Something he's achieved previously on stage with his role in SEA LIFE/A WALL but here he's a much more complex character than the wholesome normal person he was on stage.

It's difficult to not go into spoiler territory and the less you know about it going in the better it is. While Gyllenhaal carries the film with a breadth of emotion and character, he really does prove why he is quite possible the greatest living actor of this generation. With a resume ranging from DONNIE DARKO to NIGHTCRAWLER there really is not another qualified actor who could pull this performance. THE GUILTY plays like a stage production and can be put alongside PONTYPOOL and the radio play of WAR OF THE WORLDS as it draws you into a story that is played out over a phone call.

Taking place in a call centre he takes a call and fights through everything to make sure this case is solved. Some would compare it to Halle Berry's THE CALL while comparisons to this remake to its 2018 Danish predecessor are impossible to ignore, yet THE GUILTY is able to succeed on its own merit largely through Gyllenhaal's charisma to grab an audience. It's taut, it's riveting and in part, heartfelt. A definite must see for cinema fans across all genres.