Unknown
Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: February 18, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
56
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 38 Critic Reviews
Positive:
17
Mixed:
18
Negative:
3
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
SalonAndrew O'HehirFeb 17, 2011
A stylish and muscular thriller with some nifty twists and turns, a wicked sense of humor, several terrific performances and not one or even two but three of the best car chases in recent action-flick history. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianM. E. RussellFeb 19, 2011
It works as designed. Read full review
75
New York PostLou LumenickFeb 18, 2011
Unknown actually has enough of a sense of humor to admit what it is: hybrid corn. But it's been crossbred from Hitchcockian stock. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleFeb 17, 2011
Neeson has a way of getting upset - a frantic purposefulness - that fills viewers with both empathy and anticipation: He's so miserable that we care. Read full review
75
Washington PostAnn HornadayFeb 17, 2011
The weakest link in Unknown - okay, other than the utter preposterousness of its entire premise - is Jones, who as a modern-day version of Hitch's ice queens can't hold her own with the likes of Kim Novak, Grace Kelly and Eva Marie Saint. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaFeb 17, 2011
It's all very Hitchcockian, at least for a while. And clever and exciting, too, even if the convergences begin to strain credulity, and, when you think about it, defy logic, too. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsFeb 17, 2011
Sleek and, until a stupidly violent climax, very entertaining, Unknown is the opposite of "Memento." Read full review
75
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallFeb 16, 2011
Unknown is finely tuned pulp filmmaking, a dumb movie with a smart veneer, which is nothing to sneeze at. Read full review
70
NPRJeannette CatsoulisFeb 18, 2011
Though cinematographer Flavio Labiano turns the city into an alien maze of steel and glass, his chilling work is undercut by a script with more logical craters than Martin's. Read full review
70
SlateDana StevensFeb 17, 2011
You could do worse than this fast-paced, cheerfully ridiculous, generally satisfying romp. Read full review
70
The New York TimesManohla DargisFeb 17, 2011
Despite its A-movie aspirations, as the chases continue and the plot holes widen, Unknown quickly settles into the familiar B-movie comfort zone. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranFeb 17, 2011
A nifty international thriller of the "what if?" variety. Read full review
70
Boxoffice MagazineAmy NicholsonFeb 16, 2011
Jones delivers her line readings so robotically that even her truths sound like lies. She's got the look of a Hitchcock blonde, and the movements of a deer in the headlights. Even her kisses look fake. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterJordan MintzerFeb 16, 2011
Director Jaume Collet-Serra provides a steady flow of suspense and a very Polanski-esque feeling of paranoia. Read full review
63
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsFeb 18, 2011
On a minute-to-minute level, it's an engaging mystery, the kind that rewards our participation with eye candy and adrenaline shots. But when we pull back for an overview, we see that it's flat and that pieces are missing. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisFeb 17, 2011
Neeson is much better suited to the loneliness and self-doubt of Martin's crisis than he was for the thuggery of the previous movie. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldConnie OgleFeb 16, 2011
Unknown is never boring, and Collet-Serra mostly keeps up a lively pace, but he doesn't do the movie any favors with the flat, dull way he films the scene in which we finally learn what's going on. Read full review
60
TimeRichard CorlissFeb 21, 2011
It is the rare conspiracy thriller that ripens as the villains' organization and motives are gradually revealed. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierFeb 17, 2011
Twisty, engaging thriller. Read full review
60
Time OutJoshua RothkopfFeb 15, 2011
Unknown is probably the movie "The Tourist" wanted to be, if it had a pulse. Its sheer momentum makes Neeson and Kruger more attractive than even Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie. Read full review
58
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerFeb 18, 2011
Framed as a cautionary thriller about the perils of high-stakes terrorism, but I took away a different message from it: Don't forget your briefcase at the airport. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumFeb 16, 2011
The movie whips up a big old puree of ingredients borrowed from other cinematic recipes. Read full review
50
The New YorkerDavid DenbyFeb 28, 2011
Not even Neeson, with his strength and his wounded-giant vulnerability, can prevent our interest in Unknown from sliding into contempt. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderMichael WilmingtonFeb 19, 2011
The snow and haze that Spanish director Jaume Collet-Serra (Orphan) keeps pumping into the street scenes seem to have drifted into the script as well. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam LaceyFeb 17, 2011
The art of the classic Hitchcockian thriller is about style, pace and misdirection – and though Unknown is occasionally baffling and involves running and car chases, the film rarely manages to thrill. Read full review
50
Rolling StonePeter TraversFeb 17, 2011
ignore the pileup of implausibilities and Unknown becomes a diabolically entertaining con game. Does it jerk you around? Yes. Suck it up. The ride's worth it. Read full review
50
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliFeb 17, 2011
Yes, Unknown is preposterous. That in and of itself is not a reason to avoid the movie. The problems lie in the way the absurdity is presented and the manner in which the screenplay resolves once the "truth" is revealed. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubScott TobiasFeb 17, 2011
Tacked onto a perfectly respectable thriller, Unknown's mass of unlikely turns and implausible reveals make the whole film seem retroactively less sophisticated. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertFeb 16, 2011
I confess I felt involved in Unknown until it pulled one too many rabbits out of its hat. At some point, a thriller has to play fair. Read full review
50
Orlando SentinelRoger MooreFeb 16, 2011
It's a solid, engrossing thriller, but a slack one. Read full review
50
VarietyJustin ChangFeb 16, 2011
Beyond the occasional plot frissons and juicy supporting turns, it's an emotionally and psychologically threadbare exercise. Read full review
50
Village VoiceNick SchagerFeb 15, 2011
As with its protagonist, Unknown boasts tantalizing issues buried deep beneath its frantic exterior, but little idea how to unlock or address them. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleKimberley JonesFeb 24, 2011
This is no more (but no less?) than what we have rather oddly come to expect from Neeson in his late period (Taken, The A-Team). Read full review
40
MovielineElvis MitchellFeb 17, 2011
That's eventually what Unknown is - violent, impersonal and comforting. Read full review
40
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzFeb 16, 2011
There are a couple of intriguing ideas floating around here and there, but that's all they do - float around, unmoored by any sense of reality and, thus, suspense. Read full review
38
USA TodayClaudia PuigFeb 17, 2011
Trying to decipher all the convoluted pathways could drive you mad. Mostly, though, it is so ludicrous that it will unintentionally inspire laughter. Read full review
30
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternFeb 17, 2011
All of the nonsense piled on nonsense does provide some measure of pleasure. Unknown gets better by getting worse. Read full review
25
ObserverRex ReedFeb 15, 2011
Unknown makes no sense at all, so you not only worry about Liam Neeson's judgment in movies, but you begin to wonder if he's forgotten how to read. Read full review
More From This Movie

56 Critic Reviews

6.6 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL