Featured Audience Ratings

• Candy R

  
  After a car accident Dr Martin Harris (Liam) wakes up from a coma to find that his wife doesn't recognise him and another man has stolen his identity. Similar to Bourne Identity. Good cast and interesting storyline.

• Al S

  
  An explosive knockout of a film. It's Taken meets The Bourne Identity. A sharp, stylish, intense and unbelievably unpredictable edge of your seat thriller that will have your guessing right until the very end. A slickly directed and very well performed mystery that keeps the… More
  An explosive knockout of a film. It's Taken meets The Bourne Identity. A sharp, stylish, intense and unbelievably unpredictable edge of your seat thriller that will have your guessing right until the very end. A slickly directed and very well performed mystery that keeps the thrills coming and keeps you entertained as hell. A mind-blowing and heart-pounding action-packed mind-game of a thrill-machine. A brilliant and twist-filled movie that just jam-packs the excitement from beginning of end. An unforgettable guilty pleasure that just purely satisfies. Director, Jaume Collet-Serra crafts a Hitchcockian style film that mixes stunning action sequences and compelling storytelling into an exhilarating entertainment. The all-star cast also delivers. Liam Neeson is pure undeniable star power, he gives another incredible powerhouse performance. Neeson proves that the older he gets, the more capable he is at playing these intense and fun roles. Diane Kruger is stunning, she gives a strong and capable performance that works. A spectacular movie ride.

• Bruce B

  
  The typical role that Liam Neeson has become know for, excellent story line, plenty of action, awesome chase scenes. 5 stars

• Daniel P

  
  Plot twists aplenty in this film, and a staggering performance from Diane Kruger. It's a little comical to presume that the whole thing revolves around a bump on the head, and the depths of memory loss could have been probed more deeply, but in the end, all is revealed, and you… More
  Plot twists aplenty in this film, and a staggering performance from Diane Kruger. It's a little comical to presume that the whole thing revolves around a bump on the head, and the depths of memory loss could have been probed more deeply, but in the end, all is revealed, and you realize what an incredibly well-plotted film this is. The final act is a bit over the top, and the ending is a touch drawn out, and the visuals are generally cliched, but overall I think I'm just defending liking it in response to the poor ratings it received. What I saw was a solid thriller, intriguing all the way through, and yet another entertaining vehicle for Angry Liam Neeson. What's not to like?

• Flutie A

  
  Seems they were trying to capitalize on the success of 'Taken'....Less impressive in all regards and highly straightforward, there isn't much to see here.

• Raymond W

  
  Liam Neeson seems to be reinventing himself as an action actor. With Unknown, he brings a lot of good stuff to the film that make it better than if someone else had been in it. In other words, Neeson makes Unknown a lot better than it would have been without him. The problem with… More
  Liam Neeson seems to be reinventing himself as an action actor. With Unknown, he brings a lot of good stuff to the film that make it better than if someone else had been in it. In other words, Neeson makes Unknown a lot better than it would have been without him. The problem with Unknown is that it is way too implausible to be in the least bit believable, but yet at the same time, I had a lot of fun, and right from the beginning, it had me nervous, on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next. What I loved about the film though is that once you think you've figured out the plot and you say "Oh I know what's happening! This guy is going to do this and that, and then this will happen...", they throw a twist at you, and then you figure it out again, and they throw another twist at you. It is constantly getting more complicated and interesting, but after a certain point it gets too implausible, but it's still fun - just not as fun. January Jones is perfectly cast here as Neeson's wife. She exudes such an icy demeanour (like the whole film) and is perfect in her role. Diane Kruger is also excellent. Overall, Unknown is a decent action/psychological thriller film that has slightly above average acting, a very intriguing storyline, but ultimately becomes to implausible to keep most of the interest by the end. The plot twists just get to be too much.

• Mario L M

  
  My biggest problem with Unknown is the vast contrast between the film's marketing campaign which presented the film as a stylish and efficient action movie in the same vein as star Liam Neeson's breakthrough actioner Taken. First off, this film is not action film. It's… More
  My biggest problem with Unknown is the vast contrast between the film's marketing campaign which presented the film as a stylish and efficient action movie in the same vein as star Liam Neeson's breakthrough actioner Taken. First off, this film is not action film. It's a psychological thriller built around a poorly constructed mystery about a doctor (Neeson) who has a car accident on the way to a scientific conference in Berlin and when he awakens finds that a another man has assumed his identity. Now, on its face the premise could make for a interesting film but it falls down in execution. It often feels like the filmmakers are making up the story as it goes along and badly at that. As a rip roaring thrill rides go, Unknown plays out like a lazy trip through a hastily assembled carnival dark ride. The film starts out promisingly, efficiently establishing the relationship between Neeson and his wife (January Jones) and just as efficiently shatters it after the well staged car accident that leaves Neeson amnesic and disappointing frail. He spends most of the film mopey and confused about his circumstances which is probably a realistic reaction to finding another person living your life and that your wife of many years claims she's never met you but it makes Neeson a less than satisfying lead character. Action heroes can mournful and even entrenched in melancholia (The Crow). We can follow that guy. But a guy that's unsure and simpering? A man's who never shows more than a glimmer of proactive anger? It's hard to get behind that guy. Director Jaume Collet-Serra does get some mileage out of Neeson's miraculous third act memory return. It's genuinely exciting to Neeson finally unleash all of cold "I have a very special set of skills" fury on the men that have been manipulating him since the film began. But a bit of fury isn't enough to sustain a film that's as much as a patchwork as this is. Unknown seems like a film that doesn't know what it wants to be. It's nominally a mystery with some very awkward socio-politicial commentary immigrants have it rough and major corporations have malicious intentions, snore - but it's also a film that makes a play for the space that the Jason Bourne series, that of the Euro flavored, vaguely heartless travelogue actioner. There's also a lot of the Polanski-esque dread that Collet-Serra brought to his breakthrough film Orphan. Unfortunately that dread never reaches a proper crescendo. Collet-Serra is a director who can set up a joke but can never get the punchline out right. Despite the numerous poor choices that informed Neeson's work, Collet-Serra gets uniformly solid performances out of his cast. Jones is cold and machine like as always but since her character is a cipher with little to do she comes off better than she did in X-Men: First Class. Diane Kruger (Inglorious Basterds) as the cab driver who was at the wheel during Neeson's fateful crash is as compelling as an underwritten Hollywood female sidekick can be. She's nervy and at first extremely disinterested in helping Neeson piece his life back together as the crash exposed her status as an illegal immigrant. The clarity and visceral nature of her terror at being deported stands out in a film where almost all the actors underplay their roles. Hopefully she'll find material worthy her talents. Unknown isn't the action film it was billed as and it also not a very good mystery. After his crash Neeson, wakes up in a hospital and checks himself out against doctor's orders and goes to the hotel where he and his wife are check in. His wife claim's he's a stranger and another claims his number and his documents to back it up which Neeson conveniently doesn't have. He subsequently contacts a friend (an underused Frank Langella) back in the US to back up his claims and he continues to stock his wife with an insistence that rivals that of tourist seeking a cab on a city street. While trying to pick up the pieces of his life only to find that they don't fit together. Once it becomes clear that Neeson isn't quite who he remembers himself to be, the main thrust of the film becomes finding out why Neeson was really in Berlin. This strange dropping of the film's central mystery leaves the burden of interest on Collet-Serra's direction and he simple doesn't have the chops to carry you along to the end. The verve of the film's last half hour becomes numbing since there's little doubt that Neeson will expose the conspiracy behind his predicament and put an end to it's sinister intentions. That's how all action movies work. Taken is an incredibly simple film that used it's minimal plot as a way to put Neeson in situations that he'd have to murder his way out of. Unknown has a needlessly complex plot that facilitates a few fleeting set pieces and a lot of grating exposition. Unknown, judged on its own is a mediocre film. Judged against its boasts of cathartic ultra violence it's a deeply disappointing film. And there are few things more tedious than an unsuccessful action movie.

• Anthony L

  
  Unknown starts with a great premise and then throws it down the toilet. When telling a story where the small details are crucial, you also have to apply it to the way you tell it. Is it a drama, is it a thriller or is it an action film? Sure, it can be all three if it wants but after… More
  Unknown starts with a great premise and then throws it down the toilet. When telling a story where the small details are crucial, you also have to apply it to the way you tell it. Is it a drama, is it a thriller or is it an action film? Sure, it can be all three if it wants but after formulaic cliche after formulaic cliche I lost interest and for me it showed the film for what it is, all hype and no substance. I also have to point out how awful January Jones's acting was too.

• Lady D

  
  What started out to be an intriguing story of mystery, soon turned in to a very similar plot as the film "Frantic" starring Harrison Ford. It's ending gave it a pleasant twist though, but for me this was a little too much of an Action role for Liam Neeson, watchable… More
  What started out to be an intriguing story of mystery, soon turned in to a very similar plot as the film "Frantic" starring Harrison Ford. It's ending gave it a pleasant twist though, but for me this was a little too much of an Action role for Liam Neeson, watchable all the same.

• Alexander D

  
  If you have a bag or two of popcorn handy, this film is highly recommended. The bland performances are what bring it down from being a thriller of a very high quality. One who can look over something of that nature will likely enjoy this film. In short: it could have been much… More
  If you have a bag or two of popcorn handy, this film is highly recommended. The bland performances are what bring it down from being a thriller of a very high quality. One who can look over something of that nature will likely enjoy this film. In short: it could have been much better. Full Review: http://wp.me/p1Urcx-xG

• paul s

  
  A man and his wife arrive in Berlin for a science conference. The man leaves his briefcase at the airport and, while his wife is checking in to their hotel, rushes into a cab to head back to the airport. En route the cab is involved in an accident, the man hits his head and goes… More
  A man and his wife arrive in Berlin for a science conference. The man leaves his briefcase at the airport and, while his wife is checking in to their hotel, rushes into a cab to head back to the airport. En route the cab is involved in an accident, the man hits his head and goes into a 4 day coma. When he comes out of the coma he is startled to find that neither his wife, or anyone else, has come to visit him. This is the beginning of Unknown, with Liam Neeson playing the man who suffers from a bit of memory loss. If the above premise sounds somehow familiar, yes, it and the film in general did for me as well. It's not Jason Bourne exactly, but there are certainly parallels to be drawn, both in genre and style of filmmaking. Neeson plays the confused, man without a country very well, it's only when he tries to reboot his character from Taken that his tough guy persona becomes a bit transparent and over the top. The film twists and turns and you begin to wonder if anything at all is what it seems. That's a good thing, and yet while I was watching this I got the uneasy feeling that I was being had by the director. Things that seemed a stretch or just plain implausible as I was watching, upon later introspection became reasonable... so then why did I think it was implausible during the viewing? A conundrum perhaps, but somehow the film just didn't seem "right". For example, there's an extended car chase scene which simply seemed unnecessary and a bit of Hollywood (this is a thriller, so therefore there HAS to be a car chase scene). Further, it is improbable that Neeson, a biologist, would be able to expertly maneuver a stick shift Mercedes through the ice covered streets of Berlin. That it later has a justifiable explanation is irrelevant, as the seeds of Hollywood BS have already been planted. Too bad, for there is an interesting story beneath the mud here. The pacing is tight and the film does a really nice job of conveying the sense of solitude as Neeson is cast adrift, with no ID, and no credit cards, in a city far from home. January Jones is totally forgettable as Neeson's wife (and really, she doesn't have much to do in the film anyway), and it's some of the other peripheral characters who shine, especially Bruno Ganz who plays a private dick who was once part of the East German secret police, and Frank Langella who plays... well I'm not going to say, as it is one of several bits of plot twisting that I'd rather not give away. In the end, this is one of those complicated plot thrillers where everything has to go a certain way in order to tell the tale without completely losing the thread of what is and isn't. That the film did a good job of explaining the motivations and red herrings is in its favor, but still, somehow, even though it all eventually made sense, it felt just a bit too paint by numbers.

• Jameson W

  
  I really liked this. After Liam Neeson's work in Taken, I was excited for his next action movie...he's become quite the action star. Unknown did not disappoint, even despite some annoying flaws.<br/><br/>There are really only 3 things that bothered me about this… More
  I really liked this. After Liam Neeson's work in Taken, I was excited for his next action movie...he's become quite the action star. Unknown did not disappoint, even despite some annoying flaws.<br/><br/>There are really only 3 things that bothered me about this film: 1) January Jones cannot act. She's as wooden as a board in every scene...same as her role X-Men First Class. 2) Some of the things Neeson's character forgets and remembers is silly and "convenient" for my taste. I get that he had memory loss, but I don't like it when films take advantage of that fact to force an interesting plot. 3) The ending was a bit much...if I can forgive a "convenient" storyline, the least you can do is give me a strong, original ending. I've seen it before. It fit, but it fits other movies too.<br/><br/>Other than those things I thoroughly enjoyed this film. The action was great; the locations were great. I liked most of the actors. A pretty solid action thriller...I recommend it!

• Nathan H

  
  Liam Neeson stars in a mix of Taken and Bourne movies, Sounds excellent, yes? Sort of...Although there is an intriguing premise in there, but the movie never seems to fulfill its potential. It was as if whenever you expected something awesome it fell an inch short. Besides that,… More
  Liam Neeson stars in a mix of Taken and Bourne movies, Sounds excellent, yes? Sort of...Although there is an intriguing premise in there, but the movie never seems to fulfill its potential. It was as if whenever you expected something awesome it fell an inch short. Besides that, Neeson perfoms well with Diane Kruger. The directorial style was interesting. Overall a good movie, but not great.

• Film C

  
  Very disappointing movie, its very much the same as Taken which of course isnt a shock when its from the same people but the movie lack that strong enough storyline. Liam Neeson is superb however the movie itself is all over the place and loses my interest very quickly. I wouldnt… More
  Very disappointing movie, its very much the same as Taken which of course isnt a shock when its from the same people but the movie lack that strong enough storyline. Liam Neeson is superb however the movie itself is all over the place and loses my interest very quickly. I wouldnt recommend this movie its not a memorable movie anyway!

• Carlos M

  
  Liam Neeson plays another middle-aged superman in this intriguing mystery full of frentic, overstylish action. The mediocre story begins relatively interesting but then it comes up with a lot of convenient plot holes and ends on a ludicrous explanation that is more laughable than… More
  Liam Neeson plays another middle-aged superman in this intriguing mystery full of frentic, overstylish action. The mediocre story begins relatively interesting but then it comes up with a lot of convenient plot holes and ends on a ludicrous explanation that is more laughable than surprising.

• xGary X

  
  A scientist visiting Berlin is involved in a road accident leaving him in a coma, but when he awakes he finds that another man has taken his place and even his wife seems not to know him. Those expecting Taken 2 will be rather disappointed by Unknown, as instead of the indestructible… More
  A scientist visiting Berlin is involved in a road accident leaving him in a coma, but when he awakes he finds that another man has taken his place and even his wife seems not to know him. Those expecting Taken 2 will be rather disappointed by Unknown, as instead of the indestructible hard ass Neeson of that film he's the hapless victim of a seemingly elaborate conspiracy to rob him of his identity, although he's as believable in this role as he was as the O'Terminator before it. The plot is a little Xbox, but it's done with efficiency and is essentially the Bourne Identity if Jase didn't have super powers. It reminded me of the old Polanski pot boiler Frantic with a Schwarzenegger twist, and it involves all the usual ingredients of this kind of thing down to the obligatory rave scene. It's one of those films that without the star turn at the centre could've been extremely forgettable, but thanks to Neeson it maintains the interest well and although hardly Earth shattering, is an entertaining little conspiracy thriller that does the job.

• Dean !

  
  A very good action thriller with a good cast and high production values. It has some nice touches and good twists along the way. Remanded me in part of a few other films like Frantic, The Fugitive, Taken etc. All good films, unravels a bit quick towards the end, but the suspense up to… More
  A very good action thriller with a good cast and high production values. It has some nice touches and good twists along the way. Remanded me in part of a few other films like Frantic, The Fugitive, Taken etc. All good films, unravels a bit quick towards the end, but the suspense up to then is great. Well worth checking out.

• Sanjay R

  
  This movie starts out very interesting, but ends in a disappointment. It never comes full circle, but just keeps going until it resolves itself. Decent, but don't expect much going into this.

• ♥˩ƳИИ &

  
  Cast: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Quinn, Bruno Ganz, Frank Langella, Sebastian Koch, Olivier Schneider, Stipe Erceg Director: Jaume Collet-Serra Summary: Liam Neeson stars in this taut thriller as a man who regains consciousness after an auto accident only… More
  Cast: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Quinn, Bruno Ganz, Frank Langella, Sebastian Koch, Olivier Schneider, Stipe Erceg Director: Jaume Collet-Serra Summary: Liam Neeson stars in this taut thriller as a man who regains consciousness after an auto accident only to discover that another man is impersonating him, and that no one -- not even his wife (January Jones) -- recognizes his identity as the real Dr. Martin Harris. Finding himself with an unexpected ally (Diane Kruger), Harris struggles to solve the mystery and hang onto his own wits, while also being stalked by anonymous killers. My Thoughts: "You can not see this film and not think of "Bourne Identity", (unless you haven't seen the film) but 'Unknown' is it's own film. Just has a little bit of similarities. Liam Neeson was great as he always is in these action films. Diane Kruger was pretty great in the film as well. She really held her own with Liam. The film is action packed with a great car chase scene. Not original, but definitely entertaining."

• Melvin W

  
  Rodney Cole: There is no Martin Harris. He doesn't exist.  "Take back your life" Unknown is an exciting and somewhat suspenseful movie with a cool premise that never really fully comes together. Although the movie is exciting; it could have been a lot better. The… More
  Rodney Cole: There is no Martin Harris. He doesn't exist.  "Take back your life" Unknown is an exciting and somewhat suspenseful movie with a cool premise that never really fully comes together. Although the movie is exciting; it could have been a lot better. The movie twists and turns, but I was left a little unsatisfied. On a whole I liked Unknown. I just didn't love it and I really thought I would. The acting for the most part is pretty good. I say for the most part because January Jones wasn't good. She doesn't have all that much screen time though; so that's a plus. Neeson was the movie and he did a good job. I really liked Diane Kruger in a cool supporting role.  The movie does have a cool premise. Martin Harris goes on a trip to Berlin with his wife. After leaving a bag at the airport, he gets in a cab to go get it. The cab ride results in crash and Martin falling into a coma for four days. When he wakes up, he finds that there is another man acting like he is Martin Harris and his wife doesn't know who he is. It's then a race to find the truth and to find out what is going on. The movie has it's share of chases and suspenseful moments. None of them really stand out as anything we haven't seen before, but it's still a fun thriller. It's just not a great one. It's worth a watch; just don't expect Oscar level stuff. 

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