THOSE WHO WISH ME DEAD REVIEW

 *MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*

Taylor Sheridan is best known for writing the screenplays for Sicario and Hell or High Water. In 2017, he directed his first film. Wind River, which was a thriller starring Jeremy Renner and Elizabeth Olsen. It received a mostly positive reception from critics who described it as a “character driven mystery with smart writing, a strong cast and a skilfully rendered setting that delivers the bitter chill promised by its title”. Sheridan's latest film, Those Who Wish Me Dead, has recently been released, unfortunately, it’s had a mixed response, however, I was still looking forward to watching it.

A teenage murder witness, Connor (Finn Little), finds himself pursued by twin assassins, Jack (Aiden Gillen) and Patrick (Nicholas Hoult) in the Montana wilderness with a survival expert, Hannah (Angelina Jolie) tasked with protecting him -- and a forest fire threatening to consume them all.

Earlier this month, Those Who Wish Me Dead was released in the United States both in cinemas and on the streaming service, HBO Max. It was recently released in cinemas in the UK. Since then, Those Who Wish Me Dead has received a divisive response. There was those who were disappointed by it, however, others found it to be an impressive follow-up to Wind River. Although it’s not as good as Wind River, I belong in the latter category and found Those Who Wish Me Dead to be an intense thriller. 

Anyone expecting Those Who Wish Me Dead to be as good as Sheridan’s previous film, Wind River, will be disappointed. The latter film surrounded the brutal death of a young woman whose body was found by the main character, Cory. The majority of the story focused on Cory helping a FBI agent, Jane, uncover the mystery behind her death. Following its release in 2017, Wind River received a mostly positive response from critics, with many of them saying that it features “smart writing, a strong cast, and a skilfully rendered setting that delivers the bitter chill promised by its title”. Because of this, expectations were high for Those Who Wish Me Dead. Although it’s not as good as Wind River, Those Who Wish Me Dead is still worth a watch as, for the majority of its 100 minute runtime, it’s a gripping thriller that is elevated by Sheridan’s propulsive direction.

The majority of Those Who Wish Me Dead surrounds a small group of characters, including Hannah, a smoke jumper who has been left traumatised by a past event where she struggled to save some campers and a fellow smoke jumper from a forest fire. Recently, Jolie has become best known for portraying Maleficent in the Disney live-action remakes, Maleficent and its sequel, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. However, her portrayal of Hannah proves that Jolie can still deliver serious and dramatic performances. Another impressive performance is delivered by Little as Connor whose father is brutally killed by two assassins, Jack and Patrick. At first, Connor is scared and alone but soon trusts Hannah in protecting him. Because Hannah and Connor have both experienced traumatic events, they become close with the former acting as a mother-like figure for the latter. Jon Bernthal is good as the sheriff, Ethan Sawyer, who is Hannah’s ex-boyfriend and becomes involved in the situation involving her, Connor, Jack and Patrick. Sawyer could have easily been written as a typical authoritative figure who tries to save the day, however, that wasn’t the case. Sawyer also has a pregnant wife, Allison (Medina Senghore), who also gets involved in the action. Both Hoult and Gillen are intimidating as the pair of assassins who want to kill Connor, who has evidence that could send them to prison. An issue many people had with Those Who Wish Me Dead was that the characters were underdeveloped which I agree with, however, I can understand that Sheridan wanted to focus on the action, rather than spending most of the film’s runtime giving each of the characters background. 

The last year has been incredibly difficult for millions worldwide due to the ongoing pandemic caused by the outbreak of coronavirus. Cinemas were forced to close, leading to countless films having their release dates postponed or released on video on demand. Fortunately, cinemas in the UK have recently reopened. Those Who Wish Me Dead was one of the first films to be released. Although it’s not the best film I’ve seen, I still enjoyed it. Many of the films currently being shown at the cinema include sequels, reboots, remakes and are lacking in originality. Those Who Wish Me Dead is based on a novel written by Michael Koryta who co-wrote the screenplay with Sheridan and Charles Leavitt. Together, with Those Who Wish Me Dead, they’ve created a mostly riveting thriller. As the fire, caused by Jack and Patrick, quickly spreads over the forest, the intensity increases and the safety of the characters becomes uncertain. There were a few occasions where I was genuinely worried about some of the characters, especially Ethan and Allison, who both have a violent encounter with Jack and Patrick. Because Hannah and Connor were the main characters, I knew that they were going to survive, however, they still suffer and struggle to stay safe.

Cinemas are one of the perfect forms of escapism and provide audiences with new films which is why I love going. It’s been an incredibly tough year and I can understand why a lot of people may be hesitant about visiting a cinema and being in a screen with several other people. However, I’ve been really impressed by the health and safety measures provided by cinemas, with hand sanitisers being available and socially distanced seats. For anyone wanting to visit the cinema, I recommend giving Those Who Wish Me Dead a watch as it’s a riveting and fast-paced thriller.

7/10