So many people were raving about this movie online so I had to give it a go, and honestly it’s a great concept but I was a bit underwhelmed.

The Guilty follows Joe, a police officer who is assigned to dispatch calls. During his shift he gets a call from a woman saying that she has been abducted and Joe makes it his mission to track her down and save her.

Alongside this main storyline we also have the B plot of Joe going to court the next day for a crime and we find out in the end what that crime was, and I’m quite excited to say that this was the second twist of the movie, the first was a bit more predictable.

The interesting thing about this film and why I think it’s got such a buzz online is the whole thing is set from the call centre, you never get to see the woman’s perspective of what’s going on so you never get to see her being abducted or her on the highway or anything like that. Everything is from one building which makes the whole situation so much more tense and claustrophobic because you can only hear what is happening and understand it through what people are saying rather than seeing it yourself.

You end up really in Joe’s shoes because he too is trapped in this building, he can’t go help other people, and there is always this looming sense of dread whenever the phone rings and you wonder who it is, or when his call goes to voicemail you’re always wondering what’s happening on the other end and worrying that it will be the worst case scenario because that’s where your brain always goes.

I do feel if this movie wasn’t set in that way then it would not have the buzz around it that it does. It is quite a conventional crime thriller sort of storyline from the police‘s perspective and really if it was any other film set from a woman’s perspective then it could easily be any other kidnapping thriller, but because it’s set the way it is that’s what makes it intriguing, but that does not make it a good story.

As the film progresses you start putting the pieces together and you understand, at least in my opinion, even before Joe what is really going on here, and while the movie does keep you on your toes and keep you wanting to watch to find out more details once you know what’s really happening everything kind of comes down and becomes a bit flat. I know the film tries to keep your excitement past the twist but for me it didn’t really hold up, and after that point I didn’t really care about the outcome of these people, I just carried on watching because I was already so far deep.

If you enjoy crime thrillers then I definitely feel you should give this movie a go because, as I said, it is set in such a different situation and while it’s quite simple it does keep you excited by having you only focus on Joe and no one else. Although I do feel if you’re not into this sort of film already you could probably skip it because, while it is innovative with the way it goes around things, it’s not the most exciting story.

What do you think of The Guilty?

Until next time.

Published by shonaharding

Media graduate with a passion for reviewing film and TV. View all posts by shonaharding