
This shape-shifting tale of the perils and pleasures of self-reinvention begins at a dinner party, when Tom's (Michael Shannon) co-worker arrives with an intriguing date named Alice (Rachel Weisz). Tom is convinced he knows her, but she refuses to acknowledge their history. And when Alice makes a hasty exit, Tom sets off after her. What follows is an all-night odyssey shared by two people, one needing to change his life, the other questioning how to stop changing.... (Full plot summary below)
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This shape-shifting tale of the perils and pleasures of self-reinvention begins at a dinner party, when Tom's (Michael Shannon) co-worker arrives with an intriguing date named Alice (Rachel Weisz). Tom is convinced he knows her, but she refuses to acknowledge their history. And when Alice makes a hasty exit, Tom sets off after her. What follows is an all-night odyssey shared by two people, one needing to change his life, the other questioning how to stop changing.
Leave your thoughts about Complete Unknown.
| Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeThe movie's structure is peculiar, laying out a mystery and solving it early on, then spending half the film making us wonder how satisfying that solution was. |
| Combustible CelluloidJeffrey M. AndersonMay seem superficial, until you consider that this is also the life of actors. |
| The Film StageDan MeccaArmed with two top-notch leads and a compelling premise, Joshua Marston‘s third feature, Complete Unknown, spends a lot of time hinting at which direction it will go, without going anywhere at all. |
| Reeling ReviewsLaura CliffordWeisz and Shannon are two fine actors, so it is a pleasure to watch them, but Marston works too hard to make his marginal point. |
| Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranAn intriguing entertainment that’s invigorated by smart filmmaking and potent acting by the virtuosic Weisz and her fine costar, Michael Shannon. |
| Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerShannon is usually playing human question marks in the movies, so it's a twist here to see him playing the "normal" guy, except Shannon is too unconventional an actor to play anything in the normal range. |
| Chicago ReaderJ. R. JonesWriter-director Joshua Marston gives Shannon a chance to shine as a character more pedestrian than the ones he usually plays, though the story is a little too thesis driven to build any dramatic momentum. |
| East Bay ExpressKelly VanceYou can't attempt this type of actor's exercise with just anyone. |
| Under the RadarCharles SteinbergIn the hands of actors this studied and sure, the gamut of conflicting and burrowed emotions is displayed with elegant reserve. It would be a shame if the film went the way of its title. |
| Paste MagazineTim GriersonAlice is someone who's unwise to fall in love with. But Weisz makes it clear why such a person, so volatile and untethered, is so damn hard to resist. |