Unthinkable

Last updated
Unthinkable
Unthinkable.jpg
Promotional poster
Directed by Gregor Jordan
Written by
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Oliver Stapleton
Edited byScott Chestnut
Music by Graeme Revell
Production
companies
  • Lleju Productions
  • Sidney Kimmel Entertainment
  • Kimmel International
  • ChubbCo Film
  • Senator Entertainment Co.
Distributed by
Release date
  • June 14, 2010 (2010-06-14)
Running time
97 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$15 million
Box office$5.5 million [1]

Unthinkable is a 2010 American thriller film directed by Gregor Jordan and starring Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Sheen and Carrie-Anne Moss. It was released direct-to-video on June 14, 2010. [2] The film focuses on the sanctioned torture of a man who has threatened to detonate three nuclear bombs, planted in three large U.S. cities.

Contents

Plot

An American former Delta Force operator, Steven Younger, makes a videotape. Los Angeles-based FBI Special Agent Helen Brody and her team are summoned to a high school, commandeered by the military as a black site holding Younger (calling himself Yusuf Mohamed). They watch Yusuf's tape, showing three nuclear bombs in separate U.S. cities, timed for synchronous explosions if his demands are not met.

A special interrogator, "H", is brought in to force Yusuf to reveal the bombs' locations. H immediately shows his capability, chopping off one of Yusuf's fingers. Horrified, Brody attempts to put a stop to the measures. Her boss, Saunders, makes it clear that the threat of 10 million deaths necessitates the torture. H escalates his methods, with Brody acting as the "good cop". Yusuf then makes his demands: he wants the President of the United States to announce a cessation of support for puppet governments and dictatorships in Muslim countries and a withdrawal of American troops from there. The group immediately dismisses the possibility of his demands being met, citing the U.S. government's declared policy of not negotiating with terrorists.

When Brody accuses a broken Yusuf of faking the bomb threat in order to make a point about the moral character of the United States as a nation, he breaks down and admits that it was all a ruse, giving her an address to prove it. They find a room that matches the scene in the video tape, but no nuclear bomb. A soldier pulls Yusuf's picture down, which triggers a C-4 explosion at a nearby shopping mall, killing 53 people. Angry at the senseless deaths, Brody returns to Yusuf and cuts his chest with a scalpel. Yusuf is unafraid, and justifies the deaths in the shopping mall, stating that the Americans kill that many people every day. Yusuf says he allowed himself to be caught so he could face his oppressors.

Yusuf's wife and kids are detained, and H brings her in front of her husband and threatens to mutilate her right there. Brody and the others begin to take her away from the room in disgust, but H slashes her throat, and she bleeds to death in front of Yusuf. Yusuf does not break, so H has Yusuf's two children brought in. Outside of Yusuf's hearing, he assures everyone that he will not harm the children. He tells Yusuf that he will torture his children if the locations of the bombs are not divulged. Yusuf breaks and gives three addresses (in New York, Los Angeles, and Dallas), but H still prepares to torture the children, but the others forcefully stop him.

Citing the amount of missing nuclear material Yusuf potentially had at his disposal (some 18 lbs. were reported missing, with about 4½ lbs. needed per device), H insists that Yusuf had not admitted anything about a heretofore-unreferenced fourth bomb. H points out that everything Yusuf has done so far has been planned meticulously; Yusuf knew the torture might break him, and he would have been certain to plant an unexpected fourth bomb, just in case.

The purpose of the preceding torture was not to break Yusuf, but rather to make it clear what would happen to his children if he did not cooperate. The government official in charge of the operation –who helped attack H moments earlier, now demands that H torture Yusuf's children for the fourth bomb. H demands that Brody escort the children back, but she says that letting the fourth bomb kill millions is better than torturing two children. H sarcastically unties Yusuf. The official draws his pistol and aims it at H to coerce him into further interrogation. Yusuf grabs the official's gun, asks Brody to take care of his children, and kills himself. Brody walks out of the building with Yusuf's children.

In a scene not appearing in the version shown on Netflix as of June 2024, an FBI bomb disposal unit disarms the Los Angeles nuclear bomb with only 12 seconds to spare. While they start to celebrate, the timer on the fourth nuclear bomb –hidden behind a nearby crate –hits zero.

Cast

Release

The film was released direct-to-video in June 2010, since no domestic distributor could be found after Senator Films, who financed the film, collapsed before its release. [3] However, before the film's release, a DVD screening copy was leaked online and made available to download via torrent sites, with the film reaching 5th most torrented film on BitTorrent for the week ending May 23, 2010, [4] and ranked 4th on IMDb's MovieMeter on June 11, 2010, days before its official release. [3]

Reception

Charles V. Peña, a policy advisor then at the Independent Institute, opined that "Ultimately, [Unthinkable] is about the age-old question, 'Do the ends justify the means?'... In the end, Unthinkable doesn’t answer the question... but does provide plenty of food for thought". [5] Despite praising its dramatic value, film scholar Matthew Alford argues that "the aesthetic realism and apparent seriousness of Unthinkable is a mask for the absurdity of its content and reactionary politics" making it not so much a "nightmare scenario" and more "a white paper from Freddy Krueger". [6] Film critic Joe Leydon also commented that the film "comes across as more earnest than exciting in dramatizing the ongoing debate over... the efficacy and morality of torture as an anti-terrorism weapon", arguing that whilst the interactions between characters are "passionately played", the dialogue "often sounds like excerpts from op-ed essays constructed from talking points." [7]

In March 2024, Unthinkable entered Netflix's US Top 10 charts 14 years after its initial release. [8]

Related Research Articles

<i>Jungle Fever</i> 1991 film by Spike Lee

Jungle Fever is a 1991 American romantic drama film written, produced and directed by Spike Lee. Starring Lee, Wesley Snipes, Annabella Sciorra, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Samuel L. Jackson, Lonette McKee, John Turturro, Frank Vincent, Tim Robbins, Brad Dourif, Giancarlo Esposito, Debi Mazar, Michael Imperioli, Anthony Quinn, and Halle Berry and Queen Latifah in their film debuts, Jungle Fever explores the beginning and end of an extramarital interracial relationship against the urban backdrop of the streets of New York City in the early 1990s. The film received positive reviews, with particular praise for Samuel L. Jackson's performance, and was also commercially successful.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adrien Brody</span> American actor (born 1973)

Adrien Nicholas Brody is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Władysław Szpilman in Roman Polanski's war drama The Pianist (2002), for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor at age 29, becoming the youngest actor to win in that category. He also became the second American male actor to win the César Award for Best Actor for the same film. He has starred in several other films and has received several other awards including nominations for a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathryn Bigelow</span> American film director (born 1951)

Kathryn Ann Bigelow is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. She has received numerous accolades including two Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. Time magazine named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2010.

<i>Cats & Dogs</i> 2001 spy-comedy film directed by Lawrence Guterman

Cats & Dogs is a 2001 spy-comedy film directed by Lawrence Guterman and written by John Requa and Glenn Ficarra. It stars Jeff Goldblum, Elizabeth Perkins and Alexander Pollock, with the voices of Tobey Maguire, Alec Baldwin, Sean Hayes, Susan Sarandon, Charlton Heston, Jon Lovitz, Joe Pantoliano and Michael Clarke Duncan.

Kerr Smith is an American actor known for playing Jack McPhee on The WB drama series Dawson's Creek, Kyle Brody in The WB supernatural drama Charmed, Robert in Freeform's The Fosters and Axel Palmer in My Bloody Valentine 3D. He is also known for portraying Carter Horton in Final Destination (2000) and starred in the movie Where Hope Grows (2014).

<i>Big Trouble</i> (2002 film) 2002 film by Barry Sonnenfeld

Big Trouble is a 2002 American black comedy film based on the novel Big Trouble by Dave Barry. It was directed by Barry Sonnenfeld and featured a large cast including Tim Allen and Rene Russo with Dennis Farina, Zooey Deschanel, Sofia Vergara and Jason Lee in supporting roles. Like much of Dave Barry's fiction, it follows a diverse group of people through a series of extremely strange and humorous situations against the backdrop of Miami. The film was a box-office bomb, and received mixed critical reception.

<i>The Fourth Protocol</i> (film) 1987 film

The Fourth Protocol is a 1987 British Cold War spy film starring Michael Caine and Pierce Brosnan. Directed by John Mackenzie, it is based on the 1984 novel The Fourth Protocol by Frederick Forsyth.

<i>24</i> season 6 Season of television series

The sixth season of the American drama television series 24, also known as Day 6, premiered in the United States on Fox on January 14, 2007, and concluded on May 21, 2007. The season's storyline begins and ends at 6:00 a.m. It is set 20 months after the events of the previous season.

<i>Giallo</i> (2009 film) 2009 Italian film

Giallo is a 2009 Italian horror giallo film co-written and directed by Dario Argento and starring Adrien Brody, Emmanuelle Seigner and Elsa Pataky.

<i>Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore</i> 2010 film by Brad Peyton

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore is a 2010 spy comedy film directed by Brad Peyton in his directorial debut, produced by Andrew Lazar, Polly Johnsen, Greg Michael and Brent O'Connor and written by Ron J. Friedman and Steve Bencich based on the characters by John Requa and Glenn Ficarra. The film stars Chris O'Donnell, Jack McBrayer, Fred Armisen and Paul Rodriguez with an ensemble voice cast of James Marsden, Nick Nolte, Christina Applegate, Katt Williams, Bette Midler, Neil Patrick Harris, and Sean Hayes, Joe Pantoliano and Michael Clarke Duncan reprising their roles from previous first film. The film is a stand-alone sequel to the 2001 film Cats & Dogs, with more emphasis on its animal characters than the previous film, and was released on July 30, 2010, by Warner Bros. Pictures. It received mostly negative reviews from film critics and grossed $112.5 million on an $85 million budget.

Marco Weber is a Los Angeles-based German producer and Entrepreneur responsible for a series of high-profile international productions since the mid-1990s. He is also a co-founder of Vrenetic, which he co-founded with Roland Emmerich.

<i>After America</i> (Birmingham book) 2010 novel by John Birmingham

After America is an alternate history novel by Australian novelist John Birmingham and released in Australia in July 2010. It was released in the United States on 17 August 2010.

<i>LOL</i> (2012 film) 2012 film by Lisa Azuelos

LOL is a 2012 American teen romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Lisa Azuelos. A remake of the 2008 French film LOL , the film stars Miley Cyrus, Demi Moore, Ashley Greene, and Adam Sevani. It received a limited release in the United States on May 4, 2012, by Lionsgate, which handicapped it after being reeled back from a broader release, and had an overall negative critical reception. Thus, the film missed its budget by box office gross by only $500,000.

<i>The 49th Man</i> 1953 film by Fred F. Sears

The 49th Man is a 1953 American film noir crime film directed by Fred F. Sears, and starring John Ireland and Richard Denning. It was released by Columbia Pictures. The Cold War thriller was based on a story by Ivan Tors and the screenplay written by Harry Essex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carrie Mathison</span> Fictional character of the American TV drama thriller Homeland

Carrie Anne Mathison, played by actress Claire Danes, is a fictional character and the protagonist of the American television drama/thriller series Homeland on Showtime, created by Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon. Carrie is a CIA officer who, while on assignment in Iraq, learned from a CIA asset that an American prisoner of war had been turned by al-Qaeda. After a U.S. Marine sergeant named Nicholas Brody is rescued from captivity, Carrie believes that he is the POW described to her. Carrie's investigation of Brody is complicated by her bipolar disorder and results in an obsession with her suspect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nicholas Brody</span> Fictional character on the American television/drama thriller Homeland

Nicholas Brody, played by actor Damian Lewis, is a fictional character on the American television series Homeland on Showtime, created by Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon. Brody is a United States Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant who is held as a prisoner of war by al-Qaeda terrorists for eight years. Following his rescue and return home, Brody is hailed as a war hero and promoted to Gunnery Sergeant. However, a CIA officer, Carrie Mathison, suspects that Brody was turned by al-Qaeda, and tries to stop him from potentially committing a terrorist act. Between the first and second season, he is elected to Congress, but at the end of the second season he is framed for committing a terrorist bombing. In the third season, he is executed by Iranian authorities after completing a CIA operation against the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

"Tin Man Is Down" is the first episode of the third season of the American television drama series Homeland, and the 25th episode overall. It aired on Showtime on September 29, 2013.

Ashley McKenzie is a Canadian director, screenwriter, and editor. She is known for her feature film directorial debut Werewolf (2016), which won numerous accolades, including the $100,000 Toronto Film Critics Association prize for best Canadian film of the year.

<i>The Umbrella Academy</i> (TV series) American superhero TV series

The Umbrella Academy is an American superhero comedy drama television series based on the comic book series of the same name written by Gerard Way, illustrated by Gabriel Bá, and published by Dark Horse Comics. Created for Netflix by Steve Blackman and developed by Jeremy Slater, it revolves around a dysfunctional family of adopted sibling superheroes who reunite to solve the mystery of their father's death and the threat of an imminent apocalypse. The series is produced by Borderline Entertainment, Irish Cowboy, Dark Horse Entertainment, and Universal Content Productions. Netflix gave seasons 1 and 2 a TV-14 rating, while seasons 3 and 4 received a TV-MA rating.

References

  1. ↑ "Unthinkable - Box Office Data". The Numbers. Retrieved 2011-07-26.
  2. ↑ Kirkland, Bruce (2010-06-13). "'Unthinkable' asks the hard questions about terrorism | Columnists | Opinion". Toronto Sun. Archived from the original on 2016-09-19. Retrieved 2011-04-29.
  3. 1 2 "Is 'Unthinkable' the hottest new movie that you have never heard of?" . Los Angeles Times . 2010-06-14. Archived from the original on 2024-02-08. Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  4. ↑ Van der Sar, Ernesto (2010-05-24). "Top 10 Most Pirated Movies on BitTorrent". TorrentFreak . Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  5. ↑ Peña, Charles V. (2010-09-17). "Risking the Unthinkable". Antiwar.com . Archived from the original on 2022-05-27. Retrieved 2010-10-05.
  6. ↑ Alford, Matthew (2010-08-10). "Movie Review: Unthinkable – Pro-Torture Barbarism Emerges, Yet Again, in American Cinema". media-ocracy.com. Retrieved 2020-10-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)[ permanent dead link ]
  7. ↑ Leydon, Joe (2010-06-27). "Unthinkable". Variety . Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  8. ↑ Biggin, Matthew (2024-03-22). "Samuel L. Jackson's Forgotten 2010 Thriller Climbs Into Netflix's US Top 10 Chart". ScreenRant. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.