Dead Man’s Wire
January 7th, 2026
MOVIE: DEAD MAN’S WIRE
STARRING: BILL SKARSGÅRD, DACRE MONTGOMERY, AL PACINO, CARY ELWES
DIRECTED BY: GUS VAN SANT
AMovieGuy.com’s RATING: 3 ½ STARS (Out of 4)
RATED: R
RUN TIME: 105 MINUTES
It had been ten years since director Gus Van Sant last made a feature film. The filmmaker behind Milk, My Own Private Idaho, and Good Will Hunting has long oscillated between mainstream dramas and ambitious arthouse experiments, and regardless of approach, his work is always of interest to cinephiles. His newest film, Dead Man’s Wire, resurrects a true story, with Van Sant leaning into his experimental instincts to recreate an intense hostage situation. By placing the audience alongside a man enraged by his mortgage company, and examining how the media covered the unfolding events, Van Sant delivers a methodical and calculated production filled with dark humor and timely themes. The result is proof that he can still craft films that linger in the mind long after the credits roll.
The year is 1977, on a cold February day in Indianapolis. Radio disc jockey Fred Temple (Colman Domingo) spins hit songs for his listeners as gray skies loom overhead. For most, it is just another ordinary day. For Tony Kiritsis (Bill Skarsgård), however, everything has gone wrong. Feeling betrayed by the Meridian Mortgage Company, Tony responds shockingly: he takes the company’s president, Richard Hall (Dacre Montgomery), hostage, strapping a shotgun to the back of his neck. The two men slowly descend in an elevator and step into a stunned lobby before fleeing in a car. What follows is a high-speed chase and eventual standoff, an event largely forgotten by history but one that feels strikingly relevant today.
The screenplay, written by Austin Kolodney, pairs well with Van Sant’s direction, which recalls To Die For in its focus on media sensationalism and public perception. The film’s quasi-documentary style immerses viewers in the era, making it feel like a time capsule brought vividly to life. Supporting characters enhance the authenticity: Cary Elwes plays the lead detective attempting to reason with Tony, while Myha’la portrays Linda Page, a young reporter who inserts herself into the chaos, risking her safety to cover a story that speaks to broader American anxieties. Through these perspectives, the film explores how someone like Tony Kiritsis could be empathized with, even as the tension of how the ordeal will end looms over every scene.
After the initial shock of the hostage-taking and chase subsides, Dead Man’s Wire truly takes flight. The film becomes an intimate study of two men from vastly different financial worlds: one pushed to the brink, the other a wealthy executive fearing for his life. Van Sant allows a fragile, uneasy bond to form between them, not quite friendship, but something disturbingly close. Fear remains etched on both faces. Rather than urging the audience to pick sides, the film encourages understanding, suggesting that decades of financial exploitation have led to moments like this, when the working man finally says enough.
What ultimately makes Dead Man’s Wire so compelling is its precision. Every detail feels intentional, from the costumes and hairstyles to the architecture of each location, all steeped in the texture of 1977. That meticulous craftsmanship, combined with unpredictable tension and sharp thematic resonance, results in a story ripped from the headlines and a confident return to form for Gus Van Sant.
3 ½ STARS
DEAD MAN’S WIRE IS CURRENTLY PLAYING IN SELECT THEATERS.
Written by: Leo Brady
