Unsane
Sawyer Valentini is a troubled woman who moves away from home to escape a stalker. Sawyer finds she is still triggered by interactions with men as a result of her experiences. She makes an appointment with a counselor at Highland Creek Behavioral Center. At her appointment, she unknowingly signs a release voluntarily committing herself to a 24-hour stay. She calls the police but they do nothing when they see the signed release. After physical altercations with a patient and a staff member, Dr. Hawthorne says she is being kept for seven more days. Another patient, Nate Hoffman, gives Sawyer an introduction to the place. Highland Creek is running a scheme to milk health insurance claims for profit. They trick people into voluntarily committing themselves as long as the patients' insurance companies continue to pay; when insurance claims run out, the patient is "cured". One day, Sawyer sees David Strine, her stalker, working as an orderly under the assumed name George Shaw. She has an outburst and is restrained. Her outbursts result in the repeated use of restraints and sedation..
Despite its modest budget of $1.5M, Unsane became a box office phenomenon, earning $14.3M worldwide—a remarkable 853% return. The film's unconventional structure resonated with audiences, showing that strong storytelling can transcend budget limitations.
1 win & 5 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Unsane (2018) exemplifies carefully calibrated plot construction, characteristic of Steven Soderbergh's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 38 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.4, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Sawyer Valentini works at her new job in Pennsylvania, having relocated from Boston to escape her stalker. She appears competent and professional but emotionally guarded, a woman trying to rebuild her life while looking over her shoulder.. Structural examination shows that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 12 minutes when After signing intake forms she didn't fully read, Sawyer discovers she has involuntarily committed herself to the Highland Creek psychiatric facility. The doors lock behind her and her phone is confiscated. What was meant to be a consultation becomes a trap.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 25 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This reveals the protagonist's commitment to Sawyer sees a new orderly named George Shaw and becomes convinced he is David Strine, her stalker. Her violent reaction gets her forcibly sedated and moved to a more restrictive ward. She has crossed from victim of bureaucratic error to labeled dangerous psychiatric patient., moving from reaction to action.
At 49 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Notably, this crucial beat David/George confirms his identity to Sawyer in a private moment, revealing he orchestrated her commitment by infiltrating the facility. Her worst fear is confirmed—she was right all along, but being right only deepens her nightmare. The false defeat: validation that proves her complete powerlessness., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 72 minutes (74% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, David murders Nate, the one person who believed Sawyer and was working to help her escape. The "whiff of death" becomes literal—Sawyer loses her only true ally. She is completely alone, and her stalker has proven he will kill anyone who comes between them., indicates the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 79 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. Sawyer makes a calculated decision: she will pretend to accept David's delusion, feigning submission to gain his trust and find an opportunity. She synthesizes her survival instincts with the understanding that she can only escape by thinking like her predator. The shift from victim to hunter begins., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Unsane's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs systematic plot point analysis that identifies crucial turning points. By mapping Unsane against these established plot points, we can identify how Steven Soderbergh utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Unsane within the drama genre.
Steven Soderbergh's Structural Approach
Among the 17 Steven Soderbergh films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 7.1, reflecting strong command of classical structure. Unsane represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Steven Soderbergh filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional drama films include After Thomas, South Pacific and Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. For more Steven Soderbergh analyses, see Ocean's Twelve, Ocean's Thirteen and Contagion.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Sawyer Valentini works at her new job in Pennsylvania, having relocated from Boston to escape her stalker. She appears competent and professional but emotionally guarded, a woman trying to rebuild her life while looking over her shoulder.
Theme
During Sawyer's visit to a support center counselor, the counselor asks about her feelings of safety and control. The theme emerges: when systems designed to help become instruments of control, who can a woman trust to believe her?
Worldbuilding
We see Sawyer's fractured daily existence—competent at work but haunted by paranoia, attempting casual dating but triggered by intimacy, seeking help at a behavioral health center. Her world is defined by the invisible prison her stalker created, even in his absence.
Disruption
After signing intake forms she didn't fully read, Sawyer discovers she has involuntarily committed herself to the Highland Creek psychiatric facility. The doors lock behind her and her phone is confiscated. What was meant to be a consultation becomes a trap.
Resistance
Sawyer desperately tries to escape, calling the police and her mother, but the system works against her. Every rational protest is documented as further evidence of her instability. She meets other patients including the sympathetic Nate Hoffman, while learning the facility profits from keeping insurance-covered patients.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Sawyer sees a new orderly named George Shaw and becomes convinced he is David Strine, her stalker. Her violent reaction gets her forcibly sedated and moved to a more restrictive ward. She has crossed from victim of bureaucratic error to labeled dangerous psychiatric patient.
Mirror World
Nate Hoffman reveals himself as an undercover investigative journalist working to expose the facility's insurance fraud. He becomes Sawyer's unexpected ally—someone who believes her when no one else will. Their alliance represents trust in a world designed to isolate her.
Premise
The nightmare unfolds as Sawyer navigates life in the ward while being gaslit by the man she believes is her stalker. Every attempt to expose him backfires—she's seen as delusional. The horror of the premise plays out: trapped in an institution with your abuser, where your truth sounds like madness.
Midpoint
David/George confirms his identity to Sawyer in a private moment, revealing he orchestrated her commitment by infiltrating the facility. Her worst fear is confirmed—she was right all along, but being right only deepens her nightmare. The false defeat: validation that proves her complete powerlessness.
Opposition
David escalates his control, isolating Sawyer from other patients and manipulating staff. Sawyer's mother arrives but the visit is monitored and David ensures Angela sees her daughter as unstable. Nate tries to help but the walls close in. Every escape attempt is thwarted as David demonstrates his total dominion over this space.
Collapse
David murders Nate, the one person who believed Sawyer and was working to help her escape. The "whiff of death" becomes literal—Sawyer loses her only true ally. She is completely alone, and her stalker has proven he will kill anyone who comes between them.
Crisis
In isolation, Sawyer processes the horror of Nate's death and her complete abandonment. David visits her in the padded room, delivering his twisted vision of their future together. She reaches her darkest moment, seemingly broken, with no one left to help and no way out.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Sawyer makes a calculated decision: she will pretend to accept David's delusion, feigning submission to gain his trust and find an opportunity. She synthesizes her survival instincts with the understanding that she can only escape by thinking like her predator. The shift from victim to hunter begins.
Synthesis
Sawyer plays along with David's fantasy, allowing him to orchestrate her release into his custody. During transport in his car, she waits for her moment. When he stops at his isolated cabin, she turns the tables violently, fighting for her life with savage determination. She kills David, ending his obsession permanently.
Transformation
Months later, Sawyer sits in a restaurant and spots a man she momentarily believes is David. She reaches for a weapon before realizing her mistake. She's free but permanently changed—the trauma has reshaped her into someone perpetually vigilant, never truly safe. Survival came at the cost of peace.