News

If you’ve recently watched Netflix’s Rebel Ridge, directed by Jeremy Saulnier, and found yourself captivated by its intense action, dark tone, and social commentary, you’re in for a treat. Saulnier is no stranger to crafting gripping narratives full of suspense, and his 2013 crime thriller Blue Ruin is a must-watch if you want more of the director’s signature style. Below, we’ll explore what makes Blue Ruin such a standout film and why fans of Rebel Ridge will appreciate it.

A Gripping Tale of Vengeance

In Rebel Ridge, Saulnier blends themes of violence and systemic corruption into an action-packed thriller. Similarly, Blue Ruin revolves around the story of revenge, but it takes a more intimate and personal approach. The film follows Dwight, a drifter whose life takes a dark turn after he discovers that the man responsible for murdering his parents is being released from prison.

Blue Ruin...

Rebel Ridge seemingly came out of nowhere to become the biggest thing on Netflix the last few weeks. Directed by Jeremy Saulnier, Rebel Ridge feels a lot like a modern Rambo, with Aaron Pierre playing Terry Richmond, a Marine out to save his cousin and expose the corrupt police force led by Chief Sandy Burne (Don Johnson). It was a star-making performance for Pierre, but it almost didn't happen. Another actor, one much more famous, was first cast to play Richmond. John Boyega was going to be the lead in Rebel Ridge, but during filming, Boyega left under mysterious circumstances, leading Saulnier to wonder if his film was done.

The revenge flick genre includes some of Hollywood's most celebrated films, from Kill Bill to John Wick, and more recent entries like the much-maligned remake of The Crow. That last example proves that it's just as easy to go off the tracks in this genre as it is to make a hit (if not more so), which is why it's so impressive that a novice filmmaker was able to make one of the 2010s most underrated revenge thrillers with the indie film, Blue Ruin.

Revenge seldom, if ever, solves anything, and few films do a better job of proving that point than Jeremy Saulnier's Blue Ruin. Instead, the film makes it a point to clarify that violence will only beget more violence, initiating an endless cycle that can only end in heartbreak. It's a nuanced point of view that Hollywood has avoided for years in favor of churning out...

Quick Links What Is Blue Ruin About? Blue Ruin Is Brilliantly Directed and Subversive Blue Ruin Was a Deserved Breakout for Jeremy Saulnier

After five years, multiple Covid-responsible delays, and a major recasting, Rebel Ridge is finally here. Director Jeremy Saulnier, who broke out with action fans in the 2010s (especially after the ultra-brutal Green Room), first conceived of the vigilante thriller Rebel Ridge in 2019, with John Boyega in the lead role, but the Covid pandemic pushed filming back to 2022. When they started filming, John Boyega left partway through production, allegedly for family reasons. Even after it wrapped, its fate looked uncertain, reportedly spending two years in post-production before Netflix abruptly announced its streaming-exclusive release this summer.

While Saulnier has yet to truly break out into the mainstream, hes beloved in cult circles for his nuts-and-bolts storytelling, unbearable suspense, and brutal violence. Thus far, Rebel Ridge looks to be another worthy addition to his canon.

Jeremy Saulnier’s thriller Rebel Ridge was disrupted by the pandemic and the sudden departure of John Boyega. He talks exclusively to us about its “tumultuous” production.

With such taut, superbly-shot thrillers as Blue Ruin and Green Ruin to his name, interest has been high in writer-director Jeremy Saulnier’s next film, Rebel Ridge. Bankrolled by Netflix and originally due to begin filming in April 2020, however, its production was beset by problems, including a pandemic-induced delay and the sudden departure of its star, John Boyega.

Speaking exclusively to Film Stories, Jeremy Saulnier – who’s promoting a new home release of his 2015 thriller, Green Room – described the making of Rebel Ridge as “tumultuous.”

“We came back three years in a row to make that movie,” he adds.

After Covid-19 saw Rebel Ridge’s production delayed in 2020, filming commenced in Louisiana the following spring, with Don Johnson, James Badge Dale, James Cromwell...