This is a sexy story with adultery, quite a bit of skin and murder...and it stars Nick Jonas! Yes, THAT Nick Jonas...of the squeaky clean Disney-fied Jonas Brothers! Talk about a major about face with his career! Only a few years ago, he and his brothers were singing to sold out stadiums of pre-teen and teen girls...now Nick is playing in a hard edged rated R film! My how times have changed, but the real question that needs answering is it any good? Well, it's not at all bad but the film isn't without a few problems here and there. The biggest one was casting. No, Jonas was actually pretty good. While he's in his early 20s, he looks younger, so playing a character who is supposed to be 16-17 years- old worked. The problem instead was his co-star, Isabel Lucas. While her acting was quite good, the role should have been played by someone who seemed much older--perhaps a cougar in her 30s. However, Lucas looks to be about Jonas' age and this makes the story a bit more difficult to believe.
It all begins at a lake in North Carolina. Having lived very, very close to where they actually filmed the movie, it appears to be around Lake Norman--a large lake north of Charlotte, North Carolina that is known for it's expensive lakefront homes. The Martin's are a nice and seemingly normal family and their son, Doug (Jonas) is anticipating going off to an excellent college soon. But in the meantime, it's summer and he and his super-annoying friend (too annoying) are mostly concerned with scoring with the local girls. However, Doug is in for a huge surprise. His new rich neighbor has a very young and very desirable wife, Lena (Lucas). Why she would soon seduced Doug is a puzzler--and Doug is just young and stupid enough not to ask this as well. Soon, he and Lena are having an affair. Not too long after this he's pulled into a conspiracy...one that might just get them sent to prison! What is the conspiracy? Well, think The Postman Always Rings Twice and you'll have some idea what's next. Fortunately, the film does have a few nice twists and turns, though none of it seemed all that surprising to me, as a gorgeous and rich woman like this MUST have some other hidden agenda...and my guess is that this is going to run through your mind as well as you watch. However, despite the plot being occasionally a bit easy to predict at times and the ending a bit too perfect, the acting and direction are very good and the film held my interest throughout.
So is it worth seeing? Yes, though it isn't a film I'd rush to see- -though some of his old fans (provided they are now old enough to see a rated R movie) might enjoy seeing this harder edged Nick Jonas. Just be forewarned that you won't see THAT much of Nick in the film...if you catch my drift.
This Jonas brother's future looks pretty good after seeing this movie. Is he handsome leading man material? Perhaps, perhaps not...but he can act and was able to more than hold his own in the lead. His biggest problem for the future is his strength in this particular film--he just looks very, very young and I had some trouble seeing him in more adult roles. Time will tell.
