Warning! This post contains spoilers for Netflix’s Rebel Ridge.

Jeremy Saulnier‘s movies are known for following one interesting trend, but his new critically acclaimed Netflix movie brilliantly breaks away from his usual style of storytelling. After working as the cinematographer in 2006’s Hamilton, Jeremy Saulnier made his directorial debut in 2007 with Murder Party. The film not only won the Audience Award for Best Feature at the 2007 Slamdance Film Festival but also went on to earn acclaim from several viewers and critics.

Following his debut, Saulnier directed the revenge thriller film Blue Ruin, which further established him as a talented filmmaker after earning an impressive Rotten Tomatoes score of 96%. The director continued his successful run with Green Room in 2015, which failed to leave its mark at the box office but received immense acclaim from critics. His 2018 film, Hold the Dark, also mostly received positive reviews, though it was considered less memorable than his other thrillers. Saulnier’s new film is also highly acclaimed like his other movies but is visually different in one significant way.

Rebel Ridge Is Far Less Violent Than Jeremy Saulnier’s Previous Films

Rebel Ridge Primarily Relies On Suggestive Violence

Jeremy Saulnier’s Rebel Ridge boasts a Rotten Tomatoes score of 95%, making its critical reception as impressive as his previous movies. However, despite being as acclaimed as his previous movies, Rebel Ridge lacks one ingredient that defines his other films: violence. Even though Rebel Ridge begins with a gruesome scene where its main character gets rammed off the road by a police car, it avoids featuring any significant bloodshed almost throughout its runtime. This is surprising since intense, graphic violence is a hallmark of all of Saulnier’s previous films.

Although Hold the Dark, Blue Ruin, Murder Party, and Green Room are thematically and narratively different, all films use brutal violence as a narrative device to raise the tension of their overarching storylines. Rebel Ridge, in contrast, only teases the potential of extreme violence but does not pull the trigger until its final moments. From its opening scene to the climactic showdown, Rebel Ridge masterfully raises tension by letting viewers imagine the worst-case scenario and subtly implying the possibility of violence and bloodshed that looms over the characters.

Rebel Ridge Benefits From Its Suggestive Violence & Lack Of Explicit Gore

The Lack Of Violence Separates The Hero From The Villains

Rebel Ridge features a Jack Reacher-esque overpowered protagonist, Terry Richmond, as its lead, who can single-handedly take down many men without breaking a sweat. However, the movie also tries to establish that Richmond realizes resisting the law would only worsen things. Therefore, instead of taking extreme measures against the police officers who wronged him, he initially settles for non-lethal methods of escalation. This allows the movie to draw a clear distinction between him and the immoral police officers, who are willing to do anything to protect their best interests.

If Rebel Ridge had portrayed Terry Richmond as a ruthless killer, who uses violent methods to take down the police force, he would not have appeared as morally righteous as he does in the film.

Rebel Ridge‘s ending also features a showdown between Terry and the police force, where the police officers are determined to shoot him down. Despite having a target on his head, however, Terry kills none of the officers and only attempts to flee the scene. This establishes that even though he has the skills to take the lethal route against corrupt police officers, he does not want blood on his hands. If Rebel Ridge had portrayed Richmond as a ruthless killer who uses violent methods to take down the police force, he would not have appeared as morally righteous as he does.