Steven Soderbergh is our most restless director. He’s done
all-star epics (Ocean’s 11), socially relevant dramas (Traffic),
Oscar-winning features (“Erin Brockovich), experimental films (“Bubble”) and
has even retired from making feature films at the age of 50 only to return to
them four years later. He shot his
latest, “Unsane,” on an I-Phone over the course of ten days for less than a
million dollars. Far more than a
gimmick, the director’s approach underscores the filmmaking possibilities of
accessible technology while the aesthetic inherent to the device lends itself
to effective visual metaphors that underscore the plight of the movie’s
heroine.
Claire Foy gives an exceptional performance as Sawyer
Valentini, a woman on the run from her past. Having been the victim of a
stalker, she’s moved to a new city and is doing her best to get off to a fresh
start. While she likes her new job and
the people who work there, she continues to be haunted by her experiences and
consults a local psychologist. This is
where her troubles really begin as during a session she inadvertently commits
herself to a 24-hour observation period at the clinic that ultimately turns
into an extended stay. To make matters
worse, her stalker David (Joshua Leonard) is an employee at the
institute…maybe.
Perception becomes a bit fuzzy at this point, as with Sawyer
being drugged daily, we can’t be sure if what we see is true or a
hallucination. The script by Jonathan
Bernstein and James Greer fails to explore this angle fully and ends up wasting
an opportunity to effectively muddy the narrative waters with what could have
been an effective psychological thriller.
Instead, the answer to many of Sawyer and the viewer’s questions is
answered too soon and the film becomes a serviceable exercise in suspense.
Soderbergh exploits the limitations of the I-Phone by
employing many tight, intimate shots throughout to great effect. The
claustrophobic nature of Sawyer’s plight and her internal struggles are
effectively underscored by the numerous tight, close-up shots. Also, the lack of Hollywood artifice lends a
more authentic quality to the movie, giving it a much-needed sense of reality
and immediacy. Foy’s intensity and
conviction in the role makes us overlook some of the script’s shortcomings as the
actress delivers a performance “Unsane” doesn’t deserve but is all the better
for.
This article appears in Mar 22-28, 2018.
