Rebel Ridge

Police corruption, civil liberties, and martial arts collide in Jeremy Saulnier’s newest effort for Netflix, Rebel Ridge. The Southern action-thriller may not be as hyper-violent as the director’s first three offerings, but it is Saulnier’s most thematically charged film while retaining many of his idiosyncrasies. It also extends his streak of consistently quality projects and allows for a star-making performance from London-born actor Aaron Pierre.

Rebel Ridge finds Pierre’s Terry Richmond clipped by a police cruiser while biking down a lonely Louisiana road. Richmond is a Marine vet traveling to the town of Shelby Springs to post bail for his cousin, who got arrested for a minor drug charge. Despite proclaiming that his wads of cash for the bond and a new truck are legitimate, the officers seize the money anyway. Strapped for cash and hurt, Terry must find a way to retrieve the money and post bail before his cousin gets transferred to the state prison, where he risks getting attacked for a prior confession against a dangerous gangster.

Courtesy of Netflix

Opposite Pierre is Don Johnson as the corrupt police chief Sandy Burnne and AnnaSophia Robb as courthouse clerk and aspiring lawyer Summer McBride. Despite the potential consequences, i.e., losing the job she desperately needs, Summer helps Terry try to retrieve his money and discovers a far more devious scandal perpetrated by the police department. This conspiracy fuels the film’s events in an increasingly fascinating fashion, providing a more complex angle for the protagonist’s vengeance than Saulnier’s previous films.

Additionally, while this premise addresses police corruption, Terry’s role as a Black man and Marine Corps veteran should also be considered. Saulnier handles dialogue and plot points correlated with these unique identities with proper subtlety while allowing the corruption story to drive the film. As usual with the director, he places a quiet and otherwise unassuming lead into a pot of chaos that quickly boils over, and Pierre does an excellent job juggling his “silent but deadly” Marine demeanor with the calm panic of yet another Black man unjustly harassed by law enforcement.

Courtesy of Netflix

Johnson, as the Chief, is an equally fantastic villain, proving to be charming and simultaneously menacing as he makes manipulative deals with Terry and seems quite honest doing it. Robb’s Summer is curious and intelligent in a sharp, cool way while bearing her own past sins. Overall, Saulnier’s direction is excellent; not only are Rebel Ridge’s performances top-notch, but the director and DP David Gallego capture this small, rural town with a beauty and intrigue that appears to be Saulnier’s specialty.

As for the action, to reiterate, Rebel Ridge is not quite as bloody as Murder Party, as shocking and visceral as Green Room, or as downright blunt as Blue Ruin, but it is fairly realistic and effective. Terry is obviously athletic and well-built, but he harbors a secret martial prowess that makes up the majority of the film’s highlight reel. It is persuasive and entertaining to watch, and the gunplay is not overly dramatized or unbelievable as a John Wick-style action flick.

Courtesy of Netflix

Though Rebel Ridge is perhaps Saulnier’s most ambitious story to date, it is structured mostly effectively. The first act is arguably the most compelling component, and its second act works as an adequate dive into the characters and the mystery of it all, but the third feels like a bit of a step back. Satisfying in a way, maybe, but the finale devolves into an action spectacle without many of the film’s previous nuances.

Still, Rebel Ridge tells a complete story about corruption and vengeance in a bit of a different way, as one desperate man’s stand against a failed organization, and pretty much succeeds. Pierre is sure to emerge from this project as a leading man to look out for, and Saulnier as practically the American equivalent of Park Chan-wook—if he can continue putting out high-quality vengeance thrillers like this one.

Rebel Ridge is now streaming on Netflix.

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