Dead Man’s Wire, now available on Amazon Prime Video, is not your typical thriller that relies on big action moments to keep you on the edge of your seat. Instead, it holds you hostage by making you feel like you’re trapped in the same room as the characters.
Gus Van Sant’s Dead Man’s Wire is based on the incredible true story of Tony Kiritsis, who in 1977 broke into an office, rigged a shotgun to a “dead man’s switch,” and took a real estate executive hostage in order to demand justice. Sounds like the start of a great action movie, but the real trick is in how grounded in reality it all feels.
There are no generic action explosions or chases in Dead Man’s Wire. Instead, the entire conflict takes place in a single room, fueled by dialogue rather than action. But even so, the movie never slows down. The dialogue is tense, uncomfortable, and at times rambling in a way that feels all too painfully real. You’re not just watching a hostage situation; you’re watching a mind unravel.
The heart of the movie is the performance. The character is not made out to be a straight-up bad guy, nor is he someone you’re supposed to sympathize with completely. He’s a complex guy – angry, desperate, sure that the system let him down. It’s that complexity that will keep you invested. You’re not sure if you should be scared of him or if you should feel sorry for him, and the movie won’t push you in one direction or the other.
The direction by Van Sant is subtle, deliberate. The camera lingers. The silence stretches. The tension builds slowly, almost systematically, to create a sense of suffocation that borders on the documentary-like. It’s a slow burn, but it’s a deliberate one.
In less than 350 words, the takeaway is simple: Dead Man’s Wire is not a flashy movie, but it works. It’s a thoughtful, tightly wound thriller that’s more interested in the psychological than the spectacular. If you’re looking for something intense, intimate, and just plain unsettling, this is definitely worth a watch.
