The Guilty (2021) - Finally But...

 

★★☆☆☆

‘The Guilty’ is the Hollywood remake of 2018’s Danish ‘Den Skyldige’, which is truly a phenomenon in terms of engrossing storytelling, ingenious direction and screenwriting definitely. It’s one of my all-time favorites, and a must see if you want to know how a great film can be made for real with just one single actor using one single prop on one single set. It’s pure magic hands down.

 I know right after experiencing such Danish cinematic magic, that it’s only a matter of time before the Hollywood version comes to life. So here we have ‘The Guilty’ featuring Jake Gyllenhaal going solo like expected, but what’s not expected is that it turns out so ineffective and irrelevant whether or not you have to compare it with the original. I don’t, as a matter of fact. I already clear my mind before coming to this one. Still Gyllenhaal’s performance is such a letdown. He’s a great actor without a doubt in my mind’s eye, but not in here, not this time. Here he seems to be overacting throughout whether he’s at his desk or in the toilet. I don’t know if it would be better if someone else took the lead but his acting here is what makes you want to up and leave even if you’re interested to know how things are going to end up on both ends of the line.

‘The Guilty’ is a film about redemption, making what’s wrong right again. But to right the wrong, first thing first, you gotta realize and confess what you’ve done wrong instead of trying to pass the buck or making excuses, which is you know always easier said than done. Would Gyllenhaal’s Joe change his mind about what he’s going to do in court the next day if not for ‘the call’? Absolutely not! Self-reflections are rare! For most of the time, we all feel like wanting to change the world for our own good, but what we don’t know is, the world can only be changed by changing the way we look at it.