UNIDENTIFIED - - True Crime Obsession Knows No Borders

Review by Steve Barton II

In narrow-minded American heads, we tend to selfishly think that trends and events are unique to us. Almost every time you open Netflix or any podcast app, true crime or murder mystery content is front and center to shock you and capture your attention. Contrary to popular American belief, the rest of the global population has been engulfed by the true crime bubble, including countries like Saudi Arabia. With one of the first women and most noteworthy filmmakers in Saudi Arabia (Haifaa al-Mansour) returning to her home country to direct her new film, it had to be about an important topic that could break through the boundaries of every country in the world. Unidentified follows a true crime fanatic, Noelle (Mila Al-Zahrani) who is brought to the crime scene of an unidentified teenage girl who was found alone in the desert outside a small Saudi town. Noelle (using the pain of losing her own child recently) makes it her life’s mission to learn everything she can about this girl and solve her murder.

Unidentified is brilliant in its crafting of this entertaining story while also covering so many real topics. The film covers the true crime craze, the sexism and oppression that still exists in Saudi Arabia and the power of deception and manipulation. With the way Unidentified is framed, you immediately get dropped into a police station where our main character and a superior police officer are bonding over their love of a true crime internet show. Many real world relationships and friendships blossom over shared interests, but it’s truly unnerving when it’s centered around real death. While Noelle starts to show deeper interest in the case, she’s shut out from the official investigation due to sexism and biased police practices. She’s forced to conduct her own investigation and practically do the job for the incompetent men that she worked for as a photo copier.

While the film may have plenty of statements to make about the world, Unidentified also works as a thrilling drama with the way the story is balanced and how it was edited to an impactful soundtrack. With the brown sand and open deserts, the contrast of a dead girl laying in the open is a deeply shocking sight. The scene where Noelle is chasing down a suspect through the streets has an incredibly powerful instrumental score behind it that drives the intensity up and holds you hostage. With this careful crafting of this film by Haifaa al-Mansour, Unidentified stands on its own as a great drama that has style and substance. 

At the end of the day, Unidentified is a solid addition to al-Mansour’s filmography and an encapsulating story around the dangers of obsession and jealousy. While many universal topics are covered, the sexism and gender norms of Saudi Arabia are front and center and need to be discussed more. Haifaa will spark many important conversations with Unidentified and hopefully those will create change. It’s truly amazing how art can be moving yet entertaining simultaneously. Unidentified is a film that could sneak into the conversations for Best International Film at the Oscars next year, so do yourself a favor and seek it out now! 

Unidentified releases in select theaters starting June 19th!

Rating: 4/5