Spiderhead

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1:59

Spiderhead

R

2022

1h 47m

Sci-Fi

Action

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

39%

Tomatometer

155 Reviews

30%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

In a state-of-the-art penitentiary run by brilliant visionary Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth), inmates wear a surgically attached device that administers dosages of mind-altering drugs in exchange for commuted sentences. There are no bars, no cells, or orange jumpsuits. In Spiderhead, incarcerated volunteers are free to be themselves. Until they're not. At times, they're a better version. Need to lighten up? There's a drug for that. At a loss for words? There's a drug for that, too. But when two subjects, Jeff (Miles Teller) and Lizzy (Jurnee Smollett), form a connection, their path to redemption take a twistier turn, as Abnesti's experiments start to push the limits of free will altogether.

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Critics Consensus

Spiderhead's top-shelf cast and well-written source material are almost enough to compensate for its frequent failure to live up to its potential.

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Audience Says

Spiderhead's strong start and big stars only deepen the disappointment after the end credits roll on this poorly written thriller.

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Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

Does it work? Not really, but due to Kosinski’s skills behind the camera and Hemsworth’s smarmily sweaty paranoiac charm in front of it the thriller comes awfully close to being a success.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 24, 2022

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Victoria Luxford

BBC.com

While (Teller) and Hemsworth have a lot of screen presence together, there’s only so much you can do without a decent plot or script…

Rated: 2/5

Jun 24, 2022

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Randy Myers

San Jose Mercury News

It's part comedy, part thriller, part message movie about our pill-popping culture.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 23, 2022

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Bhuvanesh Chandar

The Hindu

This dystopian sci-fi thriller has everything in its arsenal to pull off something great, but doesn't.

Nov 21, 2023

Full Review

Lee Zumpe

Tampa Bay Newspapers

Where evident in the film, Saunders tone and vision stand out as highpoints in an otherwise muddled extrapolation of the intriguing concepts he explored in his short story. Sadly, not enough of his influence remains to save Kosinski’s adaptation.

Oct 31, 2023

Full Review

Manuel São Bento

FirstShowing.net

Chris Hemsworth proves again that he's one of the most underrated actors working today.

Rated: B-

Jul 25, 2023

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Terry T

Interesting in the beginning. Then it simply drops you on your head. Boring, not believable.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

10/26/24

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Jeffrey P

Reveals too much too soon, and without necessary depth or direction it mostly coasts to a basically predictable conclusion. Improves slightly in the second half, but it’s too reminiscent of Ex Machina so it loses most originality points.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

08/27/24

Full Review

Bernd P

It's such an interesting premise and translates to contemporary issues such as self driving cars (progress kills sometimes somebody). However, that was mostly a car crash in directing where the tone went from horror over psychological drama to goofy Austin Powers style comedy. That just drained away all credibility of the film.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/29/24

Full Review

Varun

Concept had potential Miles teller, Jurnee Smollett and Chris Hemsworth has given good performances but not a great one. ruined with writing (little confusing too). Also Chris should play as antagonist more..

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/29/24

Full Review

Chris O

The actors and acting are great but its got to be the most dull sci-fi movie for years

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/11/24

Full Review

Justin T

It's engaging enough, well acted and mostly interesting but it's not perfect. The pacing is uneven, there simply isn't enough story to justify the length. I feel like for the first hour that we got it way sooner than the film makers thought we would. What is interesting is really interesting but there is too much of nothing where you think you know where it is going. Thankfully the cast do such a good job that it's worth watching. The production design, camera work, sound design etc is great. The core story and concept is also good but would be better suited as a long short film or part of an anthology. A few aspects of the film didn't fit, like some of the actions seemed forced but this was so minor. Overall average film, nothing memorable but also not bad, so middle of the road I don't know what else to say!

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

10/11/23

Full Review

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Joseph Kosinski

Director

Chris Hemsworth

Steve Abnesti

Miles Teller

Jeff

Jurnee Smollett

Lizzy

Mark Paguio

Verlaine

Tess Haubrich

Actor

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Spiderhead: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

In a state-of-the-art penitentiary run by brilliant visionary Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth), inmates wear a surgically attached device that administers dosages of mind-altering drugs in exchange for commuted sentences. There are no bars, no cells, or orange jumpsuits. In Spiderhead, incarcerated volunteers are free to be themselves. Until they're not. At times, they're a better version. Need to lighten up? There's a drug for that. At a loss for words? There's a drug for that, too. But when two subjects, Jeff (Miles Teller) and Lizzy (Jurnee Smollett), form a connection, their path to redemption take a twistier turn, as Abnesti's experiments start to push the limits of free will altogether.

Director: Joseph Kosinski
Producer: Eric Newman, Chris Hemsworth, Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick, Agnes Chu, Geneva Wasserman, Tommy Harper, Jeremy Steckler
Screenwriter: Rhett Reese, Paul Wernick
Production Co: The Rebel Fleet , Screen Arcade, Conde Nast Entertainment, Reese Wernick Productions, Grand Electric, The New Yorker
Rating: R (Violent Content|Sexual Content|Language)
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action, Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 17, 2022
Runtime: 1h 47m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital, Dolby Atmos

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