Rebel Ridge review: Jeremy Saulnier's mastery shines in this politically relevant action thriller 

Netflix has just dropped another intense action thriller, Rebel Ridge. Directed by Jeremy Saulnier and starring Aaron Pierre in a lead role, alongside Don Johnson and AnnaSophia Robb, the movie was released today, on September 6, 2024, and packs suspense, gripping drama, and explosive action that is sure to leave viewers on the edge of their seats.

Rebel Ridge follows a man on a mercy mission who cycles into a small town with little idea of what lies in store for him. He is an ex-Marine who is there to bail out his cousin. But before he can reach the courthouse, he is attacked and finds himself in the middle of a vast conspiracy that trickles down to every level of the town.

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Rebel Ridge brings to light the flawed American police system and the racial prejudice that underlies it

Jeremy Saulnier’s Rebel Ridge is much like a Rambo-inspired riff on racial profiling and the insidious evil entrenched into American policing.

The viewers are introduced to Terry Richmond who is biking down a backroad with Iron Maiden playing in his ears when we find that he is suddenly and intentionally launched out of his seat by the cruiser trailing him. This gives a forewarning of the danger that Americans of color face today and sets the stage for more danger that is to unfold.

But Terry doesn't give in without a fight. He is not just fighting a bunch of prejudiced policemen, but the entire bureaucratic system that is flawed and rotten to the core. He dances around the system, playing police officers and delicately asserting his rights. It soon becomes clear that the police have chosen the wrong person to pick a fight with.

The movie comprises several themes, the central of which is the examination of a brand of Southern racism that always underestimates its target.

The most striking feature is a commentary on modern policing's inability to eradicate corruption. It explores how a system can be as brutal as physical violence, be it a deeply broken system of property seizure or weaponizing the insecure foundation of a single mother.

Rebel Ridge is also packed with a dark sense of humor, which by now we know is a trademark of all of Saulnier’s films. This brings some respite through the two long hours that the film runs at high energy. The first hour is packed and slacks a little in the middle. But Saulnier soon picks up the pace to offer an explosive ending that is undoubtedly one of the best conclusions to an action thriller.

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Jeremy Saulnier's mastery shines through in Rebel Ridge

It is unfortunate that Rebel Ridge gave the theatrical release a miss because it is indeed astounding how being a mainstream action thriller the movie still manages to be politically resonant and breathlessly suspenseful. Such a genre anomaly is only possible with Jeremy Saulnier at the helm as the film’s writer and director.

He pulled off the same act nearly a decade ago when he foreshadowed the rise of white nationalism in Trump’s America with Green Room which seems nightmarishly prophetic now. With this Netflix film, Saulnier has made a one-man-army movie where the bad guys are supposedly reformed cops weaponizing legal protocol to abuse their power.

Rebel Ridge is a testament to how much thrill can be packed into an action thriller with artistry. Saulnier has managed to blend in socio-political themes in the movie, retaining relevance in a movie industry that churns out a new action movie almost every month.

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Don't give Rebel Ridge a miss. It is now streaming on Netflix.