Unit 234

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Unit 234
Unit 234 - The Lock Up.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Andy Tennant
Written byDerek Steiner
Produced by
  • Blythe Frank
  • Hadeel Reda
  • Lee Dreyfuss
  • William Santor
  • Doug Murray
Starring
CinematographyJohn Pardue
Edited byPiper Kroeze
Music by George Fenton
Production
companies
  • Productivity Media
  • Type Street Productions
  • Red A Entertainment
  • Round Larry Productions
Distributed by Brainstorm Media
Release dates
  • September 30, 2024 (2024-09-30)(United Kingdom)
  • May 9, 2025 (2025-05-09)(United States)
Running time
86 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Unit 234 (also known as Unit 234: The Lock Up) is a 2024 American action thriller film directed by Andy Tennant and written by Derek Steiner. It stars Don Johnson, Isabelle Fuhrman, and Jack Huston. [2]

Contents

Plot

At a remote construction site, company owner Jules, who looks seriously ill, his bodyguard and driver Leon, and enforcer Doc wait with henchmen brothers Dante and Carlos for a 'delivery'. Benny arrives in an empty minivan and tries to extract more money from Jules. Searching his wallet, Jules finds a business card for a self-storage facility with unit number and access code written on it. Benny is promptly killed and the gang drives off to the facility, where they realize they need both the code and the key to unlock the unit.

Laurie starts a night shift at the facility after cancelling a weekend trip to her long-distance boyfriend Jordan. Cleaning up unclaimed units, she falls and breaks her mobile phone. Jules arrives and pretends to have lost the key to the unit, but his identity does not match the photo in the database. Laurie orders him to leave, then checks the unit and finds a sedated man inside, handcuffed to a hospital gurney. The man is Clayton; he claims Benny kidnapped him to harvest his organs.

As electricity and phone lines are cut by the gang, Laurie releases Clayton and heads to the office to retrieve the keys to her truck, but is captured by Dante. She pepper-sprays Jules and Dante and runs away, but finds the tires on her vehicle are cut. Carlos attacks Clayton but is killed in the fight.

Laurie breaks from the gang in a truck that was stored in a unit, running over and killing Dante, while Clayton disables Leon's car to avoid pursuit. Driving off, they encounter a police car, but Doc catches up with them in a stolen scooter and shoots the officer. Back in the facility, Laurie is locked in an empty unit, and Clayton is again handcuffed to the gurney.

Jordan arrives, alerted by the power outage. Doc is about to shoot him, but Leon intervenes and kills Doc, then knocks out Jordan. Jules tortures Clayton, cutting off two of his fingers to get him into admitting guilt, but Clayton manages to escape.

Leon releases Laurie. In the office, a satellite TV is running on an uninterruptible power supply. Watching the news feed, Laurie realizes Clayton is a convicted murderer who killed Jules' daughter's entire family. After a successful surgery, he broke from the hospital security with the help of his fellow inmate Benny.

Leon is murdered by Clayton. Laurie runs outside but is cornered by Clayton at the facility's fence. He tries to kill her, but is knocked off by Jules. The police arrives and shoots Jules while he kills Clayton with a cutter tool. As the police question Laurie, coroners remove Benny's body from the scene, revealing the key to the unit hidden in his shoe.

Cast

Production

Filming occurred in the Cayman Islands in April 2022. [3] In May 2022, it was announced that Jack Huston joined the cast of the film. [5]

Release

It was released on digital platforms in the United Kingdom by Signature Entertainment on September 30, 2024. [6] It was released in the United States by Brainstorm Media on May 9, 2025. [7]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 62% of 13 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.5/10. [8]

Hannah Rose of CBR gave the film a rating of 6 out of 10 and she said; It's not a classic, but at the very least Unit 234 shows just how much both its actors and its director are capable of, when given the chance. [9]

Monique Jones of Common Sense Media gave the film a positive feedback and wrote; This is pretty standard, serviceable action-thriller fare. [10]

An original score of B- was given by Brian Orndorf of Blu-ray.com and he wrote; Unit 234 actually makes its way to refreshingly dark final act, and the actors assembled mostly understand what’s required of them, getting the offering to moments of misery that are more compelling than the usual in chases and near-misses. [11]

References

  1. "Unit 234: The Lock Up (15)". British Board of Film Classification. August 20, 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
  2. Grobar, Matt (April 28, 2022). "Don Johnson To Exec Produce & Star Alongside Isabelle Fuhrman In 'Unit 234'; Radiant Films International Launching Sales On Andy Tennant Thriller At Cannes". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  3. 1 2 Grobar, Matt (April 22, 2022). "Isabelle Fuhrman Boards Thriller 'Unit 234' From Director Andy Tennant". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Grobar, Matt (May 6, 2022). "'Unit 234', 'The Bayou', 'Flying Shadow', 'A Haitian Wedding', 'Shoulder Dance' Castings; HBO Max's Asian Pacific American Visionaries Finalists; Acquisitions By Gravitas, Freestyle; More – Film Briefs". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved May 30, 2022.
  5. Grobar, Matt (May 2, 2022). "Jack Huston Boards Andy Tennant Thriller 'Unit 234'". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  6. Bray, Catherine (September 25, 2024). "Unit 234: The Lock Up review – storage facility holds deadly secrets in fun thriller". The Guardian . Retrieved April 14, 2025.
  7. London, Rob (April 8, 2025). "Don Johnson Wages a Storage War in First 'Unit 234' Trailer [Exclusive]". Collider . Retrieved April 14, 2025.
  8. "Unit 234 (2024)". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  9. Rose, Hannah (May 9, 2025). "Unit 234 Is a Subversive Thriller Movie With the Most Unexpected Cast". CBR . Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  10. Jones, Monique (May 9, 2025). "Parents' Guide to Unit 234". Common Sense Media . Retrieved June 4, 2025.
  11. Orndorf, Brian (May 7, 2025). "Unit 234 review". Blu-ray.com . Retrieved June 4, 2025.