Unlocked

A decent yet terminally erratic thriller, Unlocked follows CIA agent Alice Racine (Noomi Rapace) as she’s unwittingly drawn into a terrorist plot to wreak havoc at a well-populated London hotspot – with the character’s efforts assisted and hindered by a raft of periphery figures (including Orlando Bloom’s Jack, Michael Douglas’ Eric, Toni Collette’s Emily, and John Malkovich’s Bob). There’s ultimately not a whole lot within Unlocked worth getting terribly excited about, although the movie generally fares a whole lot better than most of its direct-to-streaming thriller fare (which isn’t saying much, admittedly) – with the strong performances and smattering of electrifying action sequences going a long way towards cultivating a watchable atmosphere. The meandering midsection, coupled with a growing emphasis on decidedly familiar elements, ultimately does ensure that the picture begins to fizzle out in the buildup to its twist-laden third act, with the end result a somewhat forgettable Michael Apted joint that really could (and should) have been so much better.

**1/2 out of ****