Taglines: You can’t outrun yourself.
Indemnity movie storyline. Theo Abrams is an ex-Cape Town fireman suffering from severe Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, unable to return to work due to the psychological trauma sustained during a failed rescue mission. An increasingly frustrated and volatile Theo’s world is rocked when one morning, he wakes up next to his wife’s murdered corpse with no recollection of what transpired and all evidence suggesting that he’s killed her.
When the police label him as the prime suspect, Theo goes on the run, and is soon being hunted by Deputy Chief of Police, Alan Shard, a notoriously ruthless soldier of the law, who is hell-bent on catching Theo as one last act of service before he officially retires.However, when an unknown third party is thrown into the mix, Theo discovers an alarming connection between the sinister forces hunting him in an attempt to silence him permanently for a reason he can’t comprehend; and a recent investigation his wife was conducting into a global armament contractor.
When connecting the dots becomes a matter of life and death, Theo becomes embroiled in a desperate fight for survival and must figure out who really murdered his wife before a terrifying conspiracy changes the course of a nation forever.
Film Review for Indemnity
The best and worst of modern action movies are on display in “Indemnity,” a South African thriller that features a sympathetic protagonist, a clever mystery and multiple white-knuckle chase sequences — all weighed down by way more backstory and explanation than necessary.
Jarrid Geduld stars as Theo Abrams, a Cape Town firefighter who has been unemployed and coping with PTSD since two of his colleagues died on the job. One morning, he wakes up to find his wife dead in their bed — and the police knocking on the door. Theo goes on the run, calling in favors from old friends and relying on his long-dormant skills as an emergency worker as he races to clear his name.
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That’s a strong premise, made even stronger by a nifty twist. As Theo investigates his wife’s murder, he discovers he may be an unwitting subject in a defense contractor’s secret experiment. In other words: He could have unconsciously been the killer.
The main problem with “Indemnity” is that while writer-director Travis Taute generates remarkable tension in the scenes where Theo is barely escaping the authorities and hurriedly digging into a possible conspiracy, the movie takes forever to really start rolling. Even then, it makes frequent stops.
The death of Theo’s wife doesn’t even happen until half an hour into this two-hour film, preceded by a lot of scenes exploring what the hero’s life has been like since he stopped fighting fires. Geduld gives a terrific performance, making Theo believably flawed and human; but this plot doesn’t need that much set-up.
The fitful pacing is also due in part to a diffuse focus, as Taute keeps cutting away from Theo to spend time with the detectives and the hired goons who are on his tail. By the time the picture reaches its climax, so many players have been loaded into the story that it sort of lumbers to a close.
There is a solid 80-minute genre film buried in “Indemnity,” for those with the patience to wait around for the highlights. But Taute has taken those good bits and sprinkled them into an over-earnest study of a broken man overcoming trauma. This is a B-movie with the pretensions of a prestige drama; and frankly, the less ambitious version would’ve likely been better.
Indemnity (2022)
Directed by: Travis Taute
Starring: Andre Jacobs, Nicole Fortuin, Hannes van Wyk, Louw Venter, Susan Danford, Abduragman Adams, Hlomla Dandala, Gail Mabalane, Greta Pietersen, Denise Newman, Michael Solomon
Screenplay by: Travis Taute
Production Design by: Chris Joubert
Cinematography by: Zenn van Zyl
Film Editing by: Simon Beesley
Costume Design by: Marne van der Burgh
Makeup Department: Francois Rademeyer
Music by: Kyle Shepherd
MPAA Rating: None.
Distributed by: Magnet Releasing
Release Date: February 11. 2022
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