HARPOON
Nothing like being stranded at sea to find out just how fucked up your friendship is with someone else. But that’s the rousing premise of director Rob Grant‘s dark comedic thriller that has its characters circling each other like sharks to survive. The trio of performances are all over the place, but then again so is the story. There’s thrills, laughs, violence, romance, and gore. Take your pick. And somehow Grant and the cast make it all go swimmingly for the most part. I mean it has its problems, yet it’s determined to fill up a boat with love, untold secrets, and sexual tension and merrily make this twisted tale splash around in it. With no life jacket on, this movie ain’t scared to change it up at any given moment and that’s the most exciting part about it.
THE FARE
An endless cab ride with no destination in sight is only a piece of the bigger mystery in this arresting yet ultimately disappointing romance movie that’s stuck in The Twilight Zone. The two main performances from Gino Anthony Pesi and Brinna Kelly (who also wrote the script) are believable, but like their one-dimensional characters, they are trapped within a story that’s running out of gas. They repeatedly go in circles, and the plot doesn’t necessarily improve as each new clue is revealed. And once director D.C. Hamilton delivers his third act magic trick, it undercuts all momentum the two lovers’ connection had and cannot recover.
BURNING KENTUCKY
A slightly gripping backwoods drama with a big mystery hanging over its head. Taking place way up in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky – a young woman grapples with lost memories of her family and their deaths. Meanwhile, there’s another family with their own shit to sort out, lead by a stand-out performance from John Pyper-Ferguson as Jaxon – the local sheriff, father and one mean S.O.B. who lost his wife. His two sons are both dealing with that as well, one choosing a more destructive path than the other.
Writer/director Bethany Brooke Anderson slowly but surely clears up the blurriness of what these two families are fighting for and against. And it’s only then when the secret is out that this journey becomes worth it. Barely. The plot isn’t completely compelling, and anyone half paying attention can get a sense of the direction it’s headed. Yet, Anderson draws up just enough family dynamics to keep you in your seat while the characters’ motives are held to the flame.
“Nature Boy” Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of Brandon’s Box Office In Your Mouth. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.
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