Hulu’s ‘No Exit’ Review – Gripping Thriller Brings the Intensity

Bloody Disgusting’s No Exit review is spoiler-free.

The ingredients in Hulu Original No Exit suggest a recipe for a conventional paranoid thriller. An isolated setting where a handful of strangers wait out harsh blizzard conditions naturally breeds suspicion. A lead heroine fleeing from her rehabilitation center would typically make for a conventional unreliable narrator that can’t be trusted with reality. Except No Exit defies those norms and instead delivers a propulsive suspense thriller that focuses on intensity.

Darby Thorne (Havana Rose Liu) just received a call that her mother is gravely ill and in the hospital. It sends her into a panic, compounded by the fact that she’s under scrutiny in rehab, and most of her family wants nothing to do with her. Darby’s burned so many bridges before we even laid eyes on her. But the tough as nails Darby defies everyone, escapes the rehab center, and begins the road trip to see mom. A raging blizzard forces Darby to seek refuge for the night at a highway rest stop along with four other strangers. When she discovers a young girl (Mila Harris) bound and gagged in the back of a van, she realizes one of the strangers inside is the kidnapper, and it kickstarts a harrowing fight to survive.

There’s not an ounce of fat on Killing Ground director Damien Power’s lean, mean thriller (you can watch the No Exit trailer here). The screenplay by Andrew Barrer & Gabriel Ferrari (Ant-Man and the Wasp), based on Taylor Adams’ 2017 novel, cleverly establishes personalities, paranoia, and mistrust through a group poker game before Darby makes the shocking discovery. Once we get a firm sense of Darby’s complicated, messy life, we get introduced to the other key players. There’s the savvy retired veteran (Dennis Haysbert), a former nurse (Dale Dickey), the charismatic type (Danny Ramirez), and the volatile loner (David Rysdahl).

Power, Barrer, and Ferrari could’ve easily spun a paranoid chamber piece around the mystery of the kidnapper’s identity, using it to stretch and build suspense. Instead, the identity is merely the starting point of an increasingly intense survive-the-night thriller. Answers come at a steady clip, forming new obstacles and survival issues. Time is of the essence, and the more desperate the players become, the more they create agonizing situations and anxiety-inducing high stakes.

The straightforward approach to the story lets the thrills refreshingly take center stage. While some reveals are in store, Power finds thrilling ways to keep the momentum accelerating into an explosive finale thanks to well-crafted action sequences and set pieces, even for such a claustrophobic single setting. It’s constantly moving forward and always visually engaging, save for one murky wooded chase, bolstered by a fully committed supporting cast.

A scene from 20th Century Studios’ NO EXIT, exclusively on Hulu. Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios. © 2022 20th Century Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Dickey and Haysbert bring complexity to characters that could’ve felt one-note in lesser hands. The true standout here, though, is No Exit’s protagonist. Liu’s Darby is a compelling blend of vulnerable, broken, and savvy street smart. A chain of disappointments, heartbreak, and tragedy forced her to develop a tough exterior that makes her a formidable foil for the antagonist, but one also prone to plausible missteps. Liu carries the movie effortlessly, and Barrer & Ferrari’s script uses Darby’s background in fresh ways that ground the film. A too tidy coda still works, thanks to Liu’s performance.

No Exit creates a propulsive thriller from a simple story with violence, breathless suspense, and nonstop thrills. A capable yet flawed lead lends emotional gravitas, bolstered by a talented supporting cast, and a pressure cooker scenario keeps the stakes high as things spiral out of control. It’s gripping and relentless in an exhilarating way.

No Exit debuts on February 25 exclusively as a Hulu Original.