Review: SILK ROAD Tells the Mostly True Story of a Dark Web Mastermind and the People Who Took Him Down
I got the chance to view the film Silk Road ahead of its release today, and it told a fascinating story that I hadn’t heard much about before this. The film opens with the disclaimer that it’s telling a mostly true story, apart from the stuff they changed. But it was pretty crazy to research it at the end and find that many of the most hard to believe parts were absolutely true.
In 2011, Ross Ulbricht, who was portrayed by Nick Robinson, created a darknet website for people to buy illegal drugs from the comfort and encryption of their homes, using bitcoin to leave their transactions traceless. He operated for two years almost completely alone, before losing control of the site which began to offer services like murder for hire, and much more dangerous substances than he had originally intended to be sold. He was tracked by the FBI as well as a DEA agent, played by Jason Clarke, who ended up arrested as well on charges of money laundering, extortion, and obstruction of justice.
This was a story that was a no-brainer to be made for the screen. It is one that is stranger than fiction and unfolds naturally before your eyes. Robinson and Clarke did an incredible job of portraying these real people whose lives had gotten away from them. Each of the characters was portrayed with a realness and a tension that made the stakes feel palpable. Another standout character was Ross’s only employee, played by Paul Walter Hauser, who was used by the DEA to get to Ulbricht. Hauser was funny and awkward in the part, and brought levity to the incredibly crazy situation his character was put in.
The movie was really good and moved along quickly. One weird choice made by the director was for some scenes to end in sort of a freeze frame, which made me wonder if my screen had frozen by accident. But aside from that, it was very well done. I highly recommend you check out this true story for yourself.
Silk Road is available in theaters, On Digital, and On Demand starting today, and will be available on Blu-ray and DVD on February 23rd.
