Exposed Movie Review

Exposed (2016)

Rent Exposed on Amazon Video
Written by: Gee Malik Linton (screenplay) 
Directed by: Gee Malik Linton (as Declan Dale)
Starring: Ana de Armas, Keanu Reeves, Christopher McDonald, Mira Sorvino
Rated: R
Watch the trailer

Plot
A police detective investigates the truth behind his partner's death. The mysterious case reveals disturbing police corruption and a dangerous secret involving an unlikely young woman.

Verdict
This combines only parts of a few different stories. From the start scenes seem to be missing. The big twist relies on this movie blatantly omitting information. While this could be a somewhat deep movie, instead it's very shallow. The main issue, at least what I assume is the main issue, is addressed only indirectly. This forces a twist without doing any of the foundational work. It's a rip off. I wouldn't be surprised if the twist was forced on the movie and not part of the original script.
Skip it.

Review
The first scene sets the pace for the movie. Ana is in a scary subway tunnel and you know something bad is going to happen. This is probably the best scene. The anticipation is really good, and you know something is going down. What actually happened made me pause the movie and read the synopsis again. I was expecting a cop movie and this goes in a supernatural direction. This made the movie much more intriguing, but that was unsustainable.

Keanu plays a cop and this isn't his best role. From this point forward whenever he appears I thought about how he was better as John Wick (read my review) and I wished I was watching that movie.

 

This movie is setting something up, but I was never sure what. With the bad reviews, I had my doubts as to whether the movie could execute. Keanu is investigating his partner's death, but seems completely unaware that his partner wasn't just a dirty cop, but a truly vile person. He should have at least heard rumors. It's apparent the movie is only telling half the story, saving the other half for the end.

This movie sets up a few connections that at first seem like it might be something deep but never pan out. There is a stuffed unicorn toy that enthralls both Ana and Keanu, but that plot point goes nowhere. While it initially seems significant, that is quickly discarded.

There's also a drug dealer who is suspected of killing Keanu's partner. The dealer's plan is to kill people to thwart suspicion and avoid the investigation. He didn't do it, and this plans seems like it would just bring him more attention. This plan is just stupid.

There's also a dog that deserves some credit. The dog just sits in every scene, showing no emotion and not even moving. Actors have to pretend the dog is doing something other than just sitting there. I like the dog's performance the best.

I didn't get why all of these plot points were in one movie and what it mattered. This is half a movie and the longer I watched, I was convinced the reveal that ties this together would be underwhelming.

The bad storytelling is exemplified in a scene with Keanu visits his dead partner's wife. We start the scene after he's already arrived at her house. She's coming on to him and he's rejecting it, but I have to imagine he was tipped off when she opened the door in lingerie holding a cupcake. This scene is the preamble to a lot of exposition from the wife to help us get to the end. It's terrible story telling.

This is half cop movie, which is just boring, and half weird religious movie. Neither half connects at all until the end. Keanu's whole plight hinges on him wanting to avenge his dead partner who was a sleazeball and apparently Keanu didn't know. There's no way he didn't know. I'm surprised somebody didn't kill the partner before this movie ever happened. That would have saved me from watching this. The core mystery is a rip off. What this movie is trying to do is not done well. This is a glancing shot at what this movies about which is strange. Why doesn't the movie address the core issue directly?

Apparently the studio didn't like what they got and wanted the story  shifted to focus on Keanu. I don't know if this is connected, but the director chose to be credited under a pseudonym.