Movie Review: ‘Unidentified’

by | Jun 18, 2026 | Movie Reviews, Movies | 0 comments


Greetings again from the darkness. Writer-director Haifaa Al-Monsour (MARY SHELLEY, 2017; WADJA, 2012) will always be referred to as a trailblazer, and the label was earned by becoming the first female filmmaker in Saudi Arabia to direct a feature length film. She has since influenced and inspired other women to pursue the art. Her latest film was co-written with her husband Brad Nieman, and it opens coldly with a woman’s dead body discovered in the desert.

Nawal (Mila Alzahrani) is an administrative assistant who is hooked on a podcast titled “Unsolved Crimes from Around the World”. Incredibly, the podcast blends crime stories with make-up tips, and Nawal just can’t get enough of either. When she hears about the unidentified body, she offers her assistance to the police who initially want nothing to do with her. However, she continues her own investigation, and the police recognize that she can ask questions and meet with people that they can’t. In the meantime, we get some of Nawal’s backstory, and as we see from the flashbacks and nightmares, there is quite a bit of unpleasantness and even tragedy.

We have become accustomed to crime thrillers with a tangled web of leads and evidence, so we recognize that this one isn’t especially well done or unique. Many aspects are included here: religion, family, pride, and dignity. Nawal claims her goal is for the family to claim the body for peace, despite the defense mode they seem to hide behind. The funniest use of a shopping mall train is a nice touch, but the big twist at the end feels unearned. Anytime a film uses the final ten minutes to lay out what really happened, it’s a big clue that the storytelling was less than admirable. I simply chuckled at the presumption that we should accept this. Haifaa Al-Monsour does include commentary on the social and cultural treatment of women even in modern times, and that’s likely the most important aspect of the film.

Sony Pictures Classics will release the film on June 19, 2026

David Ferguson
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