Russell Crowe’s new movie “Unhinged,” is set to be released in theaters on July 1st by new distributor on the block Solstice Studios. No, I’m not kidding. The film is actually set to be the first feature film to be shown exclusively in movie theaters since the shutdown of theaters began in early March. The gist of the plan is actually quite simple, any multiplex that is actually open in America, and there are already a few in Texas and Georgia, will probably screen this film because, well, there is nothing else to screen right now.
“We made this decision after extensive consultation with the National Association of Theater Owners and leading theater chains,” said Solstice president/CEO Mark Gill. “Those conversations have convinced us there is a way to meet pent up demand for the theatrical experience safely.”
As seen by this newly-released trailer, “Unhinged” has Crowe hamming it up here as a deranged driver who gets honked at by a poor young mother (Caren Pistorius) only to go all gonzo-ballistic on her for the rest of the film. Yes, the entire premise is about road rage.
The film stars Crowe alongside Caren Pistorius, Gabriel Bateman, Jimmi Simpson, Austin P. McKenzie. and is directed by Derrick Borte (“American Dreamer” “London Town,” “The Joneses.”). This is all fine and dandy, It’ll be interesting to see how well the film does upon release (Someone had to eventually break the ice), but something tells me that the lack of open-for-business movie theaters come July 1st will turn this a very limited release.
Here’s the synopsis:
Academy Award winner Russell Crowe stars in Unhinged, a timely psychological thriller that explores the fragile balance of a society pushed to the edge, taking something we’ve all experienced- road rage – to an unpredictable and terrifying conclusion. Rachel (Caren Pistorius) is running late to work when she has an altercation at a traffic light with a stranger (Crowe) whose life has left him feeling powerless and invisible. Soon, Rachel finds herself and everyone she loves the target of a man who decides to make one last mark upon the world by teaching her a series of deadly lessons. What follows is a dangerous game of cat and mouse that proves you never know just how close you are to someone who is about to become unhinged.
I briefly mentioned Ben Affleck's "Animals" yesterday, but I need to get more into it, because this thing, now streaming on Netflix, is one of the most baffling efforts I've seen from a serious director in a long time.