'No Exit' Review: Havana Rose Liu shines in Hulu's captivating claustrophobic thriller
In recent years, we have seen a lot of movies based on novels. Every major production house and streaming platform has capitalized on this sub-genre. Hulu is the latest streaming platform to join the bandwagon with ‘No Exit’, a thriller movie based on the 2017 novel of the same name written by Taylor Adams.
The story revolves around a young woman named Darby, played by Havana Rose Liu, who is in a rehab center and sharing her story of addiction. However, everything turns upside down once she gets a call from Joe, who tells her that her mother had a brain aneurysm and the doctors are operating on her. She wanted to talk to her sister, but she wasn’t allowed because of rules. At night, she went to one of her friends at the rehab center asking for her phone so that she can talk to her sister.
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She called her sister Devon but didn’t want to see her because of all the problems she has caused to the family because of her addiction problems. Darby plans to run away from the facility and manages to do that in the middle of the night. However, she gets stuck in the blizzard and is forced to make a pit-stop at the nearest Visitors’ Centre that’s filled with a handful number of people. While going out, she hears a girl’s scream and when she looks inside of a green van, Darby sees a little girl tied up. The movie soars from this point and sees Darby trying hard to take the little girl out of that dangerous situation.
The best thing about the movie is that it takes about 10-15 minutes for setting up a foundation for an enthralling ride. Once Darby gets to know that the little girl has been held as a hostage, everything changes drastically and she starts taking everyone present in the retreat as the suspects. The suspects are Ash (Danny Ramirez), Ed (Dennis Haysbert), Sandi (Dale Dickey), and Lars (David Rhysdahl).
The movie is suspenseful from the beginning and the tension keeps rising as soon as she gets to know the real people behind the kidnapping. The unique thing about the movie is that didn’t require the mysterious background score to keep viewers hooked to the screens as the story does that without fail. The story packs some amazing surprises and establishes a claustrophobic setting that makes the movie even more interesting.
Havana Rose Liu is undoubtedly the soul of this thriller movie. She has been seen in various TV shows and movies in supporting roles, but this is the first time that she is the leading lady of a film. She is riveting as Darby and every time she arrives on the screen, we see another layer of her nuanced character. I would definitely want to see her as the leading lady in every film from here on.
Danny Ramirez as Ash is phenomenal as well. Watch out for the amazing twist his character brings out during the movie, it will completely blow your mind. On the other hand, no one could have played a character like Lars better than David Rhysdahl. He is brilliant.
Dennis Haysbert and Dale Dickey are amazing as well. The young actress Mila Harris does a commendable job in portraying the character of Jay and literally knocks it out of the park with her acting.
Every character seems to have some mystery attached to it and gets moving by taking advantage of the magnitude of the crime. The movie talks about human trafficking and how big the entire syndicate is. ‘No Exit’ is a solid thriller and raises the stakes with its brilliant writing and claustrophobic setting. Most importantly, it never lags with its pace and keeps the viewers hooked to their screens.
If you are looking for a movie that keeps you entertained and provides you with the right amount of thrills, then ‘No Exit’ is perfect for you.
