The Guilty

A subjectively suffered good deed and Intensive game of contrasts. Both in visual terms from the light and darkness in the two workplaces, and in auditory terms from the nervous silence and bone-chilling vibrations or ringing tones. However, I would consider its most attractive asset the semantic contrast, where the lone sentence on the recording can affect the viewer completely differently every time. I won't argue that it's more than just a suffocating genre film, but it's so well done that I will gladly join the growing buzz. (07/29/2018)

A minimalist drama almost exclusively centred around its main character, whom the viewer can’t take their eyes off for an hour and a half, and through whom all the storyline and dialogues of the secondary roles are conveyed. The story is based solely on the dialogues uttered by the main character via a telephone line, and entirely stands as such – no blood, no action, no effects (I can imagine how fast this film pays for itself). I definitely value the concept. However I can’t appreciate the film fully, the storyline suffering from some illogical gaps, and not a single reheated filmic cliché is left out in the final part. Still, I admire the creators for being able, once again, to come up with a project that follows the rule ‘a lot of bang for the buck’. [KVIFF 2018] (07/05/2018)

Very nice, tense and surprising. The beginning and the first call with the kidnap victim are gripping, but the pace gradually crumbles due to the not very interesting personal storyline, but the credible dialogues and the strong (though not shocking) twists keep your attention throughout the decent runtime. The original way it casts doubts over who’s guilty and not guilty and the work ethic prevail over the pure formal qualities and the authenticity, and it’s not bad at all. 75% (01/24/2019)

If someone told me before watching The Guilty that all it takes is one room, one man, and a telephone to create a riveting film, I would have been significantly skeptical. Nevertheless, it works. Thanks to a clever screenplay and a focused and absolutely natural Jakob Cedergren in the role of a police officer, you will witness a minimalist film that has the ability to emotionally shatter you into pieces. The Guilty is an inconspicuous and intimate piece that can easily go unnoticed in the flood of big-budget, visually spectacular action movies, which would be a shame. Therefore, I recommend listening carefully to the voice of a man who can discern, amidst a series of annoying and unnecessary phone calls, the one that leads to a cruel revelation and, with its darkness and hopelessness, breaks free from the routine of emergency hotline workers. Overall impression: 95%. (08/03/2018)

When an entire movie is based on one guy, you need to like him – one way or another. I had pretty mixed feelings about him, though. While I thought he gave a good and believable performance as an actor, I was incredibly annoyed by his superiority and his treatment of his colleagues and the people on the other side of the line. It was quite distracting and as a result I was only interested in what was happening where we couldn't see it. You could say this film is about a single moment in time. And that worked for me. But then it sort of awkwardly fell apart, and suddenly it was over, and that just wasn't enough for me. A weaker 4 stars (11/03/2021)