The Desperate Hour

Play trailer

1:56

The Desperate Hour

PG-13

2022

1h 24m

Mystery & Thriller

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

27%

Tomatometer

77 Reviews

16%

Popcornmeter

100+ Ratings

Unfolding in real time, THE DESPERATE HOUR is a "riveting and pulse pounding" thriller from award-winning director Phillip Noyce. Recently widowed mother Amy Carr (Academy Award®-nominee Naomi Watts) is doing her best to restore normalcy to the lives of her young daughter and teenage son in their small town. As she's on a jog in the woods, she finds her town thrown into chaos as a shooting takes place at her son's school. Miles away on foot in the dense forest, Amy desperately races against time to save her son.

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Naomi Watts gives it her all, but The Desperate Hour falls short as a thriller as well as social commentary.

Read Critics Reviews

Brad Newsome

Sydney Morning Herald

Mar 10, 2022

Naomi Watts runs herself ragged, but this unsatisfying thriller from director Phillip Noyce doesn’t rank alongside Dead Calm and Rabbit Proof Fence at the apex of his oeuvre.

Go to Full Review

Mark Kennedy

Associated Press

Feb 25, 2022

1/4

It turns out watching an hour of Watts breathing heavily as she runs and gets more frantic, her eyes ever widening, isn’t that much fun.

Go to Full Review

Matt Zoller Seitz

RogerEbert.com

Feb 25, 2022

1.5/4

A film where it's clear that everyone involved is operating at the peak of of their skills, yet the whole is so misguided that the result is still awful.

Go to Full Review

Maxance Vincent

InSession Film

Mar 6, 2024

D-

Its misguided script, the senseless exploitation of real school shooting victims to redeem Naomi Watts’ character automatically makes it one of the worst movies of the year and one to never watch.

Go to Full Review

Keith Garlington

Keith & the Movies

Aug 16, 2022

2.5/5

The decision to explore grief through the tragedy of others doesn’t land well at all. Especially a tragedy that’s so real and devastating as a school shooting.

Go to Full Review

Zoë Rose Bryant

Next Best Picture

Jul 14, 2022

5/10

The Desperate Hour proves woefully misguided in its attempts to merge solemnity with suspense while tackling timely subject matter, making for a film that doesn't quite know who it's for or what story it wants to tell.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

GoogleJo & Co

Mar 12, 2022

It was OK although very repetitive during the middle of the movie and a mother worrying about her teenage son did some very strange things. The iPhone messaging and calling was too much and shots of her falling and limping were followed by her walking and even running without any discomfort. Then the next shot she was running fine and then next scene she was limping. She even got concussed! So some appalling continuity.. The end piece tacked on with her teenage son appealing to families to watch their kids more was totally unnecessary. The movie should have told that message without it The final meeting with her son was a relief but also from us not having to hear all that phoning. There should have been more back story with her relationship with her son and why it deteriorated after her husband /his father died. It would have been much more moving. The star, Naomi Watts, was on the screen the whole time and I wish my iPhone had a battery in it that lasted so long and have a range that could fine internet coverage in a remote woodland. She did as good a job as anyone could dealing with that script and talking to so many voices over a cell phone! It was not as bad as some of the 1 and 2 stars out of 10 reviews would suggest. They must be the super-hero, non stop, crazy noisy action brigade. But the movie, "The Desperate Hour", sadly was not great.

See more

Jerome L

Feb 26, 2022

Slow (in fact, very slow) developing but then totally engrossing film.

See more

Ruwade Bryant T

@RT72332009 Aug 3, 2026

Probably the worst movie I’ve watched to date. Shittest story line, no suspense, and rather just frustration. Watching a mum run the first for 50 minutes and just taking phone calls gets pretty boring. 0/10 would recommend.

See more

Anonymous B

@AnonBunnie Jan 7, 2026

Watch literally, anything else. Thia movie isn't worth it.

See more

John J

@RT02287367 Dec 1, 2025

Horrible movie!! Don’t do it!!

See more

Victoria F

@RT83079776 Oct 27, 2025

No idea why this got such bad reviews and I’m SO pleased I gave it a chance. Gripping from start to finish and Naomi Watts is just brilliant. The fact that she is utterly alone for so much of the movie adds real desperation to the story. Definitely ignore the tomatometer on this one!!

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Phillip Noyce

Director

Naomi Watts

Amy Carr

Colton Gobbo

Noah Carr

Sierra Maltby

Emily

Chris Sparling

Screenwriter

David Boies

Producer

Shut In

5%

23%

Shut In

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Shut In

Missing

88%

89%

Missing

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Missing

Dream House

7%

36%

Dream House

Watchlist

Caddo Lake

78%

78%

Caddo Lake

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Caddo Lake

The Intruders

17%

21%

The Intruders

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

The Desperate Hour: Trailer 1

1:56

Now Playing

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Unfolding in real time, THE DESPERATE HOUR is a "riveting and pulse pounding" thriller from award-winning director Phillip Noyce. Recently widowed mother Amy Carr (Academy Award®-nominee Naomi Watts) is doing her best to restore normalcy to the lives of her young daughter and teenage son in their small town. As she's on a jog in the woods, she finds her town thrown into chaos as a shooting takes place at her son's school. Miles away on foot in the dense forest, Amy desperately races against time to save her son.

Director: Phillip Noyce
Producer: David Boies, Andrew Corkin, Alex Lalonde, Chris Parker, Zack Schiller, Dylan Sellers, Chris Sparling, Naomi Watts
Screenwriter: Chris Sparling
Distributor: Vertical Entertainment
Production Co: Stratagem RX, JamTart Productions, Untapped, Boies / Schiller Film Group, Limelight, Stratagem Pictures
Rating: PG-13 (Thematic Content|Some Strong Language)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 25, 2022, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 25, 2022
Runtime: 1h 24m

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings