RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Found a Bug? Squash It! Report Bugs Here
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / Unknown
Unknown

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Buy Poster External Icon
Bookmark and Share

Unknown (2006)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
36 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:42

Fresh:15

Rotten:27

Average Rating:5.1/10

Consensus: Though it boasts a talented cast, this thriller fails to make you care about the twisty mystery of the men's identities and situation.

Rated: 15

Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:13-04-2007

Synopsis: Five men awaken in a warehouse with no way out and no recollection of how they got there, only to struggle with their suspicion of each other as they try to piece together their story from... Five men awaken in a warehouse with no way out and no recollection of how they got there, only to struggle with their suspicion of each other as they try to piece together their story from available clues. One (Greg Kinnear) has a broken nose, while another (Jeremy Sisto) is handcuffed to a pipe and slowly dying from a gunshot wound. Two (Barry Pepper and Jim Caviezel) are unhurt, while the fifth (Joe Pantoliano) is tied to a chair--which is how the group wish to keep him until they figure out why he got that way. Meanwhile, the police are tracking a sinister man in snakeskin boots (Peter Stormare) with a connection to the group, and a worried wife (Bridget Moynihan) of one of the men searches desperately for her husband. But will the men kill each other out of suspicion before finding a way out of the warehouse? The second half of the '90s saw a spate of neo-noirs inspired by Tarantino's supercharged RESERVOIR DOGS. Christopher Nolan's MEMENTO (2000), though in obvious debt to Tarantino, was a breathtakingly new shot in the arm for the genre. Simon Brand's UNKNOWN is a brainy and verbose melding of the two. Making its low budget work in its favor, the script could easily be performed on a stage, as the locations number in the low single digits. Though many young pulp-drunk post-Tarantino directors have toyed with non-linear narratives, Matthew Waynee's script doesn't make the device seem rote or overindulgent. Also a small, strong cast led by Caviezel, Kinnear, and Pepper ensure this solid thriller isn't just another entry in the tough-guy crime stakes. [More]

Starring: Greg Kinnear, Joe Pantoliano, Jim Caveziel, Barry Pepper

Starring: Greg Kinnear, Joe Pantoliano, Jim Caveziel, Barry Pepper, Jeremy Sisto, Bridget Moynahan, Peter Stormare

Director: Simon Brand

Director: Simon Brand
Producer: Rick Lashbrook, John S. Schwartz
Composer: Angelo Milli
Studio: Weinstein Company

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
  • Trailer
    >
1 of 1

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Reviews for Unknown

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
04/12/07
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Times [UK] | comment Comment
04/14/07
Times [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

goes round in circles, with petty arguments and lengthy monologues making the minutes drag in what ought to be a taut thriller.

Full Review Source: Channel 4 Film | comment Comment
06/12/07
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Channel 4 Film
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Enjoyable thriller with superb performances, a decent plot and some thought-provoking ideas about identity and human nature underneath its twisty tale.

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
04/12/07
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
04/14/07
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Gimmicky but effective, this claustrophobic thriller has such an intriguing premise that it keeps us entertained even as it gets increasingly contrived.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
01/27/07
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: culturevulture.net | comment Comment
12/30/06
culturevulture.net
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Once the paranoid surrealism of the opening scenes begins to fade, so does the film's inherent interest level.

Full Review Source: Salon.com | comment Comment
11/02/06
Andrew O'Hehir
Andrew O'Hehir
Salon.com

Never rises above the level of a promising calling card, but there's something refreshing about its innate sense of its own B-movieness.

Full Review Source: The Stranger (Seattle, WA) | comment Comment
02/04/07
Andrew Wright
Andrew Wright
The Stranger (Seattle, WA)

Director Simon Brand and screenwriter Matthew Waynee have constructed a fairly efficient little B movie from bits of Reservoir Dogs, Cube, and every amnesia thriller in which the victim is afraid of finding out he's the bad guy -- multiplied by five.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles CityBeat | comment Comment
11/10/06
Andy Klein
Andy Klein
Los Angeles CityBeat

A nifty little psychological crime thriller that suggests a Treasure of the Sierra Madre for the postindustrial age.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
12/14/06
Ann Hornaday
Ann Hornaday
Washington Post

Gritty, gimmicky.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
11/10/06
Bill Stamets
Bill Stamets
Chicago Sun-Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

An entirely serviceable little thriller of containment, Unknown is one of those independent movies whose limited means clearly influenced its conception and creation.

Full Review Source: IGN Movies | comment Comment
11/02/06
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
IGN Movies

It's a good gimmick, but still a gimmick, and we're left with more confusion than tension.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
12/08/06
Bruce Westbrook
Bruce Westbrook
Houston Chronicle

I like this kind of movie that takes off and you're not exactly sure where it's going to go.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
11/28/06
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

Unknown is far from a perfect movie, but it's more amusing than many better-made ones.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
11/30/06
Colin Covert
Colin Covert
Minneapolis Star Tribune

Even as you anticipate what's next, formula demands that at least some of the men's judgments will be wrong.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
11/09/06
Cynthia Fuchs
Cynthia Fuchs
PopMatters

This is the work of filmmakers so satisfied with a story that isn't the least bit satisfying.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
02/05/07
David Cornelius
David Cornelius
eFilmCritic.com

The cesspool around the Saw franchise has spilled into the Indiewood projects not far from where first-time director Simon Brand fires off this Hollywood calling card.

Full Review Source: Slant Magazine | comment Comment
10/28/06
Ed Gonzalez
Ed Gonzalez
Slant Magazine

Not since Memento or The Usual Suspects has a movie thrown viewers for as many loops.

Full Review Source: ComingSoon.net | comment Comment
11/03/06
Edward Douglas
Edward Douglas
ComingSoon.net
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by comments; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 >> >|
all

Latest News for Unknown

July 30, 2007: Frank Miller Faults Weinsteins for Sin City 2 Delay
While sitting on a Comic Con panel, Frank Miller was asked about the hold-up on Sin City 2. (Numerous times, probably.) And it looks like the celebrated author / artist /... More...

November 02, 2006: Critical Consensus: "Borat" Best Reviewed Film Of Year: High-Five!; "Flushed Away" Worth A Spin; "Santa Clause 3" Gets Coal
This week at the movies brings us the profound discoveries of a great Kazak journalist ("Borat," starring Sacha Baron Cohen), a battle between Santa and Jack Frost... More...

See All

More DVDs

Top Rentals
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
36% 36% Angels & Demons
25% 25% Four Christmases
68% 68% Funny People
95% 95% Star Trek
14% 14% The Ugly Truth

More Rentals…

New On DVD This Week
Tomatometer Percentage Movie
83% 83% Harry Potter and the H…
67% 67% Public Enemies
75% 75% Julie & Julia
95% 95% The Cove
85% 85% World's Greatest Dad

More New Releases…

What’s Hot On RT

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

Twilight Saga: Eclipse

5 facts straight from the cast.

Disney Animation

Disney Animation

We chart the studio's classics.

Avatar

Avatar

An exclusive look at the human hardware.

Eric Bana

Eric Bana

The Star Trek star talks cars with RT.

Other News

  • Top Stories
  • Popular
  • Interviews
 
 

Comments

 
 
Top Stories
Headlines Comments
  
  • Exclusive: The World of Where the Wild Things Are
21
  • Peter Jackson Talks Hobbit, LotR Blu-ray Source: Collider.com
17
  • Woman Jailed for Filming New Moon Screening Source: Chicago Sun-Times
15
  • McG Has Plans for Fifth and Sixth Terminator Movies Source: Gizmodo
183
  • Spielberg Hops Away from Harvey Source: Variety
22
  • Tarantino Could Have Directed Green Lantern Source: MTV
24
  • Will Duvall be Gilliam's Don Quixote? Source: Collider.com
26
  • No Hobbit Until 2012? Source: The Wrap
22
  • Don't Hold Your Breath for Hancock 2 Source: HitFix
42
  • Peter Berg Talks Battleship Source: CHUD
2
Popular
Headlines Comments
  
  • Total Recall: Natalie Portman's Best Movies
82
  • Five Favorite Films with Jason Reitman
56
  • Critics Consensus: Everybody's Fine Is Just OK
50
  • 10 Horrifically Profitable Films
46
  • Sundance 2010: RT's 10 Most Anticipated Movies
41
  • Five Favorite Films with Jesse Ventura
40
  • Weekly Ketchup: Tron Team to Remake The Black Hole
37
  • Awards Tour: National Board of Review Winners List!
28
  • Box Office Guru Wrapup: The Blind Side Takes the Lead
28
  • Friday Harvest: Iron Man 2, Harry Potter, and more!
24
Interviews
Headlines Comments
  
  • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
2
  • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
17
  • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
12
  • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
23
  • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
8
  • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
15
  • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
22
  • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
9
  • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
28
  • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
30
 
 

Sponsored Links

Around The Network

  • Unknown at Rotten Tomatoes
  • Unknown at IGN

Fresh Links

Featured
RT on YouTube
RT on YouTube External Link

Subscribe to RT's YouTube channel and don't miss a second of our cracking video content.

RT on Twitter
RT on Twitter External Link

Follow Rotten Tomatoes and join us as we tweet about the week's releases.

 
 
About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Celebs List| Newsletter
IGN Logo

IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.