Rebel Ridge Film Review: Top-Heavy Thriller

Netflix’s Rebel Ridge is a daring thriller that starts off strong but loses steam as the story creates distance from its compelling message.

We’re not sure exactly where this story is going, we don’t even know who these characters are, but the filmmaking prowess makes us aware that everything about this story is tilting on a knife’s edge. This is exactly what makes Rebel Ridge’s first act so entertaining – but unfortunately, once that mysterious tension is gone and the story is forced to develop, it loses sight of where to go from there.

In the Rebel Ridge’s aforementioned opening, Terry Richmond is on his way to bail his cousin Mikey (C.J. LeBlanc) out of jail when he’s stopped by the police and suspected of being involved in an unexplained drugs operation. His money is confiscated, his cousin is being prepped for a transfer to a dangerous prison, and the police have no intentions of helping him. And such sets the scene for Rebel Ridge’s cerebral revenge story, as Terry sets out to get his money back and save his cousin. And yet, what follows is essentially two different stories in one: this engaging tale of vengeance and justice is practically finished by the end of the first act, and the film completely transforms into a more by-the-book Jack Reacher-esque investigative thriller.

However, that first act is really something special. Aaron Pierre immediately solidifies himself as a powerful lead figure, commanding the screen with his immense presence and slick, cool persona. Terry is such a compelling character, not just because of Pierre’s smoothness, but also because the audience is watching the story clearly through his eyes. We’re immediately pulled into his quest to save Mikey (even though we’ve never met him), and much of that is down to the constant injustice and microaggressions that he faces from the police and legal system. Nobody is willing to help him, and that’s why he’s forced to take things into his own hands when that mission of revenge starts to ignite. While this structure results in something a little unstable with the first, second, and third acts being completely different, it all ultimately builds towards a conclusion that wouldn’t work without the context that the rest of the film provides.

At its heart, Rebel Ridge is fundamentally an action film: there are plenty of high-stakes fight sequences, a couple of chase scenes, and many more violent set pieces that are executed with expert precision. The hand-to-hand combat blends dynamic camera movements with even swifter choreography to create an incredibly immersive sense of power and force behind the fights, which gives Rebel Ridge a much denser atmosphere than most direct-to-streaming action movies. This is definitely the film’s biggest strength, and it allows the film to remain engaging when the story wanders a little too far from its socially important core. 

Rebel Ridge might not be perfect, but it’s much stronger than most would’ve expected from the latest Netflix original action movie. There’s a real spirit behind the story that makes everything feel much richer and more weighted than just punch-and-kick action sequences, with Terry’s journey manifesting into a powerful message of crime, discrimination, and police neglect. But more than anything, Rebel Ridge will likely be remembered as the breakout feature in the catalogue of an upcoming action star, with Aaron Pierre instantly proving his on-screen charisma.

Rebel Ridge is now available to watch on Netflix.