He garnered critical acclaim with the release of his stunning revenge film “Blue Ruin,” then followed it up with the exceptionally brutal thriller “Green Room,” now director Jeremy Saulnier is back with a trailer for Netflix’s upcoming action film “Rebel Ridge,” and it’s instantly become one of my most anticipated movies of 2024.
The film follows Terry Richmond (Aaron Pierre), a former Marine who is robbed by corrupt cops while trying to post bail for his cousin Mike (CJ LeBlanc). When Richmond tries to report the robbery to the local police station, he finds himself directly in the crosshairs of the local police chief (Don Johnson).
If you've seen movies like this before, you know that Richmond is going to use his Marine skills and wage a war on the police chief that he won't believe. After all, the tagline for the movie is “He didn't start this fight, But he will end it” . “
His second film for Netflix after 2018's disappointing “Hold the Dark,” starring Jeffrey Wright and Alexander Skarsgård, “Rebel Ridge” looks like a return to form for Saulnier, judging by the action-packed trailer below.
Seasoned action fans will immediately draw parallels between “Rebel Ridge” and “First Blood,” the masterful first installment in Sylvester Stallone’s “Rambo” series — that film saw a PTSD-ridden Vietnam vet (Stallone) pushed too far by a sheriff (Brian Dennehy) into a power grab, leading him to wage a one-man war against the local law enforcement who were pursuing him.
While “Rebel Ridge” is clearly inspired by “First Blood,” the film takes an entirely modern approach to a familiar premise, updating it for today’s audiences in several ways. For one, “Rebel Ridge” focuses on institutional corruption, particularly the way the local cops immediately turn on him when they realize he’s ratting out two of their own.
Second, it's probably no coincidence that Richmond is a black man, and we have to imagine that race will factor into the film's story, even if only as subtext. Between his roles in “Machete,” “Django Unchained” and HBO's “Watchmen,” Don Johnson has played a number of racist characters of late, and it seems entirely likely that his police chief will be another one.
If there's one concern about “Rebel Ridge,” it's that the movie ran into some trouble during production: Original actor John Boyega (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) pulled out during filming, citing “family reasons,” though sources close to the film have said he wasn't happy with the script (or, less importantly, his hotel accommodations). The actor's lawyer denies the allegations.
I am nonetheless very excited to see “Rebel Ridge” when it hits Netflix on September 6, 2024. Not only is “First Blood” one of my all-time favorite films, but I also consider Saulnier’s “Blue Ruin” and “Green Room” to be two of the best thrillers of this century so far. Let’s hope he delivers another hit here.