BROOKLYN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL: A little disappointed at Tribeca, popped into BIFF to see Marco and Mario's always eclectic program, and this little gem floored me. For 15 minutes, this is a really sweet little movie...then, hold on! A simple idea, any film student could come up with. The diff? As Hitchcock said : STORY, STORY, STORY. This film's story unfolds BRILLIANTLY and surprises at every turn. Writers Kurt Larson (ALPHA GEEK) and long- time character actor John Walcutt (TITANIC, LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, and currently Jennifer Love Hewitt's shadowy nemesis on GHOST WHISPERER) take you on a ride that's like the Family Channel on a bad drunk...complete with uber-nice-guy Robert Hays (AIRPLANE! LONG JOURNEY HOME), who uses his still boyish charm like an infecting poisonous gas. Hays also produces (with Sheri Hellard) and, along with first-time director Andrew J. Traister, they have a flawless eye for performances. From Walcutt, who turns in one of those Jeff Bridges-type performances that hold a movie together but never get noticed, to Jamie McShane (DEADWOOD, THE NINE) who matches him step by treacherous step, all the way down to newcomers Aubrey A. Macker, sexy-brat Samantha Alarcon, and Brian Lee Franklin-who will have you thinking like you did if you saw Hillary Swank for the first time in BOYS DON'T CRY ("Is that actor REALLY...?"), and rising star James Molina, the acting is terrific. Props to everyone involved. Note to Sony Pictures Classics: PLEASE! For most real adults, this movie is WAY more scary and threatening than HOSTEL or SAW.
