Unknown: Fast Moving and Effective

I noticed that Unknown, a 2011 movie, is on Netflix's top 10.  My wife and I saw it a few nights ago, and very much enjoyed it.

Liam Neeson plays a professor (Martin) who gets separated from his wife Elizabeth (Mad Men's January Jones) and then loses part of his memorable when he's in a car accident.  He has enough of it to know he is married and to whom, but when he meets up with his wife, he finds she's with another man, who has Martin's name, and the couple claim to have no idea who the Neeson Martin is.

That's a good set-up for an action adventure, and Unknown follows through very well.  The action takes place in Germany, and Martin, wanting to find out what's going on with his wife, stays one step ahead of being killed.  Diane Kruger plays Gina, who becomes an ally of Martin's, and the narrative is peopled with oddly memorable characters, including a hotel factotum and a former East German member of the Stasi.

[spoilers ahead]

Unknown also does a good job of sprinkling in clues which are foundations for the surprise ending.  For example, Martin seems to be a very sharp fighter and driver for a professor, and that's because ... as revealed at the end, he's a secret agent not a professor.

The action is non-stop and effective, there's no telling who will live or die, and I very much recommend Unknown.

 

Paul Levinson's books ... Paul Levinson's music