The Unforgivable is a fascinating and visceral depiction of a woman trying to rebuild her life after spending 20 years in prison for fatally shooting a sheriff during a chaotic standoff over the foreclosure of her family home in a rural region of Washington state. Directed by Nora Fingsheidt and starring Sandra Bullock, this unmissable film will begin streaming on Netflix Friday.
The adaptation of a 2009 British miniseries of the same name follows ex-convict Ruth as she moves into a halfway house, takes jobs at a fish processing plant and construction site, and attempts to stay out of trouble while her haters, parole officer and the sons of the man she was convicted of killing monitor her every move.
Speed and Hope Floats icon Bullock is excellent here and continues to demonstrate the range of her talent in the role of a woman who is broken, but trying to survive in her new circumstances, seemingly shocked and confused when anyone shows her the smallest kindness.
For much of the movie, she doesn’t explain herself, and while haunted by what happened two decades earlier, doesn’t seem remorseful for her actions or searching for forgiveness. The one thing that appears to keep Ruth going is her determination to reconnect with her sister Katie, who was 5 and placed in the adoption system when Ruth went to prison. Ruth’s silence keeps the audience guessing about who she is and what she did.
The story of what happened the day Mac Whelan ended up dead on a farmhouse floor is effectively revealed via flashback. Surrounded by bank representatives and police, Ruth hysterically refuses to leave the home her dead parents left her. Whelan (W. Earl Brown) tries to diffuse the situation by entering and imploring Ruth and Katie to stay with his family while everything is sorted out.
Key elements of the tragedy, which may alter the viewer’s perspective of Ruth and her decisions, are not disclosed until late in the film, leading to surprising twists and collaborations later down the road.
In the present, Ruth sets into motion a chain of events when she visits her former home, which has been renovated and is now owned by lawyers John and Liz Ingraham (Vincent D’Onofrio and Viola Davis.) Liz initially is suspicious and doesn’t want to get involved, but John wants to help Ruth and reaches out to Katie’s adopted parents, Michael and Rachel Malcolm (played by Richard Thomas and Linda Emond,) who are understandably wary about Ruth becoming part of 25-year-old Katie’s life, even though the young woman has questions about her past. The movie takes a turn from moving family drama to heart-pounding thriller when Katie’s adopted teen sister Hannah (Jessica McLeod) acts as liaison between the family and Ruth, and ends up in grave danger at the hands of someone who wants to harm Ruth.
With nearly every character trying to protect/honor their family, The Unforgivable makes for a potent emotional and dramatic story about love, loss and second chances.
Final grade: A
Here’s the trailer of the film.