‘On the Line’ Review: The Mel Gibson Thriller Channels Films from Yesteryear

“On the Line” reminded me of many action thriller films from the ’90s. It stars Mel Gibson as a late-night shock jock who gets a call from a man claiming to be holding his wife and daughter hostage. Written and directed by Romuald Boulanger, the 2022 film has received negative criticism, unfairly in my opinion. If you haven’t been spoiled, I suggest watching it and letting yourself have fun.

Elvis Cooney (Gibson) has hosted a graveyard shift radio program for 40 years. He’s abrasive in the mold of Howard Stern, with a fraction of the celebrity status. He does have fans, haters, and stalkers as any media personality does.

Mel Gibson is a great actor

Mel Gibson gets dusted off from time to time and demonstrates how fantastic an actor he is. Elvis Cooney is an asshole, but we still like him as we watch, a testament to Gibson’s charisma. It’s believable that Elvis has resisted change over the decades. Radio is a dying medium and he’s a relic of the craft. “I’m a radio host,” He barks at the station manager who urges him to be more active on social media. “Not a TikTok jock.”

A caller has broken into Elvis’ house and is holding his wife and daughter hostage. The caller demands Elvis follow his instructions, the first being he remains on-air for the duration of his demands. “I’m gonna do something really screwed up tonight.” The mysterious voice threatens.

Clocking in at 104 minutes, “On the Line” moves fast. Elvis is assisted by new hire Dylan (William Moseley) which is the latter’s first day on the job. Kevin Dillon, Enrique Arce, and Alia Seror O’Neill lend support.

SPOILERS!

Throughout the film, I noticed something was amiss. The actions and statements of the characters didn’t seem to jive with realism. The bad guy has otherworldly abilities. A janitor refers to family back in Spain. Several times, Elvis himself remarks that it seems like a bad movie. At first, I chalked it off to lousy writing, directing, and/or acting. As it continued, I knew something wasn’t right. My guess was that Elvis was orchestrating the kidnapping as a ratings boost. I won’t say exactly, but I wasn’t far off.

I’ve read and watched reviewers hating on it. I had the opposite reaction. We complain that movies always follow the same formula. “On the Line” dared to be different. Bad guy kidnaps family, good guy must stop him. Its been done many times before. I applaud Romuald Boulanger for doing something different.

“On the Line” is a fun thriller. It slides in as a changeup to standard Halloween viewing but it works. Once.