A House of Dynamite review

A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE: 

KATHRYN BIGELOW CRAFTS AN EXPLOSIVE THRILLER! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: *** ½ out of 4

NETFLIX

Idris Elba and Rebecca Ferguson in A House of Dynamite

 

            It’s a race against time as the U.S. government fight to stop a nuclear missile from an unknown enemy in A House of Dynamite, the new film from director Kathryn Bigelow (Point Break, The Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty) and her first feature film since 2017’s Detroit. I’m always excited and intrigued to see what Kathryn Bigelow brings to the screen, I loved The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty (Both of which were among my best films from 2009 and 2012) and I thought Detroit was a solid crime drama that touched upon relevant subject matter in an effective way. 

            Naturally, I was curious to see what she would do next which brings us to this movie released in limited theaters followed by a Netflix release soon after. Not sure why this film needed to be a Netflix project given that Bigelow is a pretty big name in the film industry, but I digress. 

            I went to one of the few theaters in my area that was showing it and…yeah, this is a damn good film. Do I like it as much as Hurt Locker or Zero Dark Thirty? No, but I was on the edge of my seat and invested in what was happening onscreen. 

            The film follows Captain Olivia Walker (Rebecca Ferguson-Mission: Impossible franchise, Doctor Sleep, Dune: Parts 1 and 2), a senior officer in the White House Situation Room and monitors threats in her country. But when an unidentified nuclear missile is launched by an unknown enemy at the United States, the race is on to determine who is responsible and how to respond. 

            The film also stars Idris Elba (Marvel Cinematic Universe, Pacific Rim, Molly’s Game) as POTUS (President of the United States), Gabriel Basso (Super 8, The Kings of Summer, Hillbilly Elegy) as Deputy National Security Advisor Jake Baerington, Jared Harris (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Lincoln) as Secretary of Defense Reid Baker, Tracy Letts (The Big Short, Lady Bird, Ford v. Ferrari) as General Anthony Brady, Anthony Ramos (In the Heights, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, Twisters) as Major Daniel Gonzalez, Moses Ingram (The Tragedy of Macbeth, Ambulance, Obi-Wan Kenobi) as Cathy Rogers, Jonah Hauer-King (A Dog’s Way Home, The Little Mermaid (2023), I Know What You Did Last Summer (2025)) as Lieutenant Commander Robert Reeves, Greta Lee (Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Past Lives, Tron: Ares) as Ana Park, and Jason Clarke (Zero Dark Thirty, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Oppenheimer) as Admiral Mark Miller. 

            Overall, A House of Dynamite is a tense and riveting thriller that takes a nightmarish situation and makes it frighteningly plausible. Sure, it’s nowhere near as bombastic as The Hurt Locker and is more tension-filled, but it is a masterfully crafted movie that is very effective from the start to its bleak conclusion. 

            I’m not usually scared of horror movies, but seeing a film with this sort of premise and knowing that events like this can happen and has happened in real life is terrifying to me. Bigelow understands the urgency of current events and events that could happen if we’re not careful and crafts gripping, nail-biting stories centered around them with this being no exception. 

            I was captivated, horrified, and on the edge of my seat throughout my viewing of the film and by the end, I was practically speechless and took a long time mentally processing it on my way home. This is a Netflix movie, but if you can, I strongly urge you to see this in a theater to get the full experience, not just because of seeing and hearing missiles flying on the big screen, but the collected audience reactions to things that occur. 

            The performances are great all across the board though the film jumps around between actors and characters spontaneously, but everyone brings their A-game. Wouldn’t expect anything less from a movie with Idris Elba, Rebecca Ferguson, Anthony Ramos, and Greta Lee (In the much better movie released this past weekend) among others in the leads. 

            The movie is also shot incredibly well with a lot of intense camera movements to better show how heavy the situations in the film are. Yes, Bigelow did this sort of thing with The Hurt Locker, but it worked well for that movie and it also does here too. Take notes, Michael Bay! 

            A House of Dynamite is a tense, gripping political thriller with an explosive blast that absolutely deserves your attention. It is a frightening and compelling experience that has a ton of relevance to today’s politics and I’m happy to report that with her first directing effort since 2017, Kathryn Bigelow hasn’t lost her golden touch.