Netflix is About to Lose a Chilling Thriller Gem Not Enough People Watched (So Hurry Up)

If you’re looking for a film that brings to life all of the fear and vulnerability behind the idea that people, no matter who they are or what they’ve experienced, can be fooled by someone who projects a modicum of confidence and expertise, then you won’t want to miss this stranger-than-fiction film currently streaming on Netflix. But time to catch it is running out, as the streamer is slated to pull it from the platform in the coming days. So if you’re into spy thrillers and mysteries with some genuinely wild twists and turns, you’re going to want to stop what you’re doing and boot up the TV.

Rogue Agent centers around Robert Freegard (James Norton), a conman who poses as an undercover MI5 agent as he takes countless victims prisoner amidst a high-stakes manhunt. His plans fall apart when the woman who fell in love with him (Gemma Arterton) brings him to justice. It really is as wild as it sounds, and even if the film isn’t quite as gripping as the real story that inspired it, it’s still a fantastic way to kill two hours.

Read Next

Netflix Is About To Lose One of the Best Thrillers of All Time

It’s Almost Hard to Believe These Were True Events

Play video

The film stands with better-than-middling reviews from critics, who feel that sticking closer to the original events that inspired it would have made for a more interesting watch. Rogue Agent earned itself a 72% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer, and seems to be carried by the performances of the main stars, James Norton and Gemma Arterton, who shared tense chemistry. And while it comes across as almost overly polished, it makes no bones about what a terrible and terrifying person that Robert Freegard was, softening none of his edges. “James Norton & Gemma Arterton are the reason to see this, the movie plays more like a drama than a spy thriller it’s made out to be. I always enjoy seeing Norton on screen and it’s especially gratifying to see him explore his dark side,” says Ruth Marimas of FlixChatter. Tom McCarthy of Deadline Hollywood adds, “Crucially, the script and actors make it all credible, even as the reality has been glamorized, polished up and in all ways been made more glamorous and provocative.”

Casual viewers weren’t as captivated by the performances in Rogue Agent, giving it 65% rating on the Popcornmeter. “Show me one woman who liked this movie, because men shouldn’t make movies about subjects they don’t understand. Awful. A GCSE media studies student would have more class,” said one viewer when touching on the elements of domestic violence shown in the film. Another said, “It may be well acted but the first half was slow and the rest lacked passion despite various attempts to generate some. Sufficient to just keep one interested but left with a feeling of – so what, next.”

While the reviews are a mixed bag, Rogue Agent presents itself as a decently made, albeit too shiny, thriller, and sometimes that’s exactly the kind of film that you’re hoping to kill some time with. Catch this one before it’s pulled from Netflix.

Did you enjoy Rogue Agent? Let us know your thoughts in the comments. And don’t forget to check out the ComicBook forum to see what other fans are saying.