Sandra Bullock, as a former prisoner, is looking for a sister and redemption.
Based on the 2009 series of the same name, the film tells the story of a convicted criminal Ruth (Sandra Bullock), who, after twenty years in prison, is trying to adapt to a society (for some reason inhospitable). A series of flashbacks opens the prisoner's biography: before serving the sentence, the woman lived with her younger sister Catherine (Ashling Franchozy). The police tried to evict the heroines from the house, which resulted in the murder of the sheriff. In the wild, Ruth wants to find Catherine, who grew up with adoptive parents and does not remember what happened.
Every time another movie with a star of the first magnitude comes out on Netflix, there is a vague hope of the opportunity to enjoy what is happening on the screen. Yes, it cannot be denied that Sandra Bullock never ceases to reveal her acting range in one of the most dramatic roles in her career - a woman who spent two decades behind bars and whose goal is to find a loved one after such a long separation. But even her acting power is unable to pull the project out of the chaotic jumble of elements on which the plot is built.
A touch of grayness and darkness fills the screen from the first minutes. After imprisonment, the action develops according to a predictable scenario: the assigned curator monitors Ruth's behavior, she needs to get along in a cramped room with other marginalized people, and those around her throw sidelong glances. Adapting to a routine after twenty years behind bars is the foundation of a film that, unfortunately, is crumbling by the minute. Inside this story, the storylines of several characters are trying to get along: Ruth herself, who wants to get in touch with her sister; Katie's adoptive parents, who want to protect their daughter from unnecessary worries; two sons of a murdered policeman seeking revenge; and, finally, the family of the lawyer Ruth, where Viola Davis has nothing to play but her usual anger. In this interweaving of heroes, the key, it would seem, is the thought "is there life after prison?" dissipates, and instead comes the message of unconditional forgiveness. Such a load would be quite appropriate if "The Unforgivable" were a mini-series, but in less than two hours, watching it turns out to be painfully tedious. This film could be a statement about how American society avoids convicts, but instead of delving into the topic, the filmmakers prefer to get off the intended path and put together an abundance of conflicts.
The film exists in two time periods: the present - a holistic picture, where the trauma of each character bleeds in full view, and the past, which has become a kaleidoscope of fragmentary memories, hinting to the viewer that everything is not as simple as it seems at first glance. The fateful day, when the policeman was killed, and Ruth went to trial, again and again pops up in the memory of the heroine and her sister. It’s only when the puzzle finally comes together that the truth is revealed and something like a climax happens. But there is no promised catharsis, since hardly any unexpected move can restore the integrity of this melancholic, but unnecessarily depressing picture.
This article was sponosred by Tiffany Thorngren
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