After years in the making and a string of unprecedented delays and cast changes, one of the best films of 2024 is dropping on Netflix this week.
Rebel Ridge, from director Jeremy Saulnier, has been hailed by critics as an ‘absolute powerhouse’, with Aaron Pierre branded ‘flat-out incredible’ in the lead role.
The tense flick follows an ex-marine as he battles a group of corrupt police officers and unwittingly finds himself in a deadly conspiracy while trying to bail his cousin from prison.
It is set to premiere on the streaming platform on September 6 and boasts a cast including Don Johnson, AnnaSophia Robb, David Denman and Emory Cohen.
Aaron also stepped into the lead role of Terry Richmond after John Boyega was forced to quit the production in 2021, citing ‘family reasons’.
Little else is known about the blockbuster, which is yet to record a Rotten Tomatoes score, but early reviews have been incredibly positive.
‘Rebel Ridge is an absolute powerhouse of muscular filmmaking from Jeremy Saulnier,’ Matt Neglia shared on Letterboxd. ‘Aaron Pierre commands the screen as a cool as hell, one man wrecking machine.
‘It may be overlong and peaks in its gripping first act, but there’s no denying how much it had me hooked from the opening scene and kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end.’
Brett Arnold described it as their ‘favorite movie of the year’, enthusing: ‘It couldn’t be more perfectly calibrated for crowd-pleasing thrills; heart-pounding tension and just pure adrenaline that we’ve come to expect from Saulnier.
‘It just starts and doesn’t quit with one of the best opening scenes in recent memory. If there’s a more satisfying movie released this year, I haven’t seen it, and I’ve kind’ve made it my unpaid job to see them! [sic].’
Jules Forde added: ‘A film that is working on all cylinders. Steps on the gas and never lets up. Other car metaphors! But seriously, this is one of my favorites of the year. Searingly entertaining.’
Rebel Ridge has been years in the making for Jeremy, who initially started putting the wheels in motion in 2019, before 2020’s global pandemic put a complete halt to things.
Production picked up again in 2021 but then John exited the project shortly after it began, meaning the search was on for another leading man.
Once Pierre was in place, filming wrapped in July, 2022, with post production facing yet more halts thanks to the Hollywood strikes last year.
Unpacking the severely-delayed release date, Jeremy couldn’t rave enough about the finished cut, telling the Hollywood Reporter: ‘Because we faced headwinds, [Rebel Ridge] did end up being a version of the movie that far exceeded my expectations.
‘I’m fully at peace with it, and I love it in its current form before it’s even released. This is a first for me to have this much joy upon sharing my latest work.
‘So I do believe that this feels like the only version of the film that was destined to happen, and I’m so grateful that the fates connected me and Aaron Pierre, and that the crew and the cast had the fortitude to stick with us.’