After hearing from her estranged mother, a woman and a documentary filmmaker set out to the remote New Mexico town where she lives to start reconnecting, but when she mysteriously disappears, the two set out to find her, leading them to a dangerous conspiracy they might not survive.
Overall, this was an intriguing if somewhat underwhelming effort. Among the better elements of this one comes from the somewhat strong setup that gives everything a strong emotional hook to get things going. The idea of undertaking a documentary about reconnecting with her estranged mother after over a decade of being estranged and trying to put the past behind them, only to be led down a dark path when the intervening years of her mother's life start to catch up to her after disappearing, comes across rather nicely. It all sets this up with an emotionally charged and intriguing premise that spurs a fantastic mystery, as shortly after reconnecting, they discover her mother's missing status and the series of inquiries around the community looking for her and finding something they're not prepared for. That their journey takes them into the underbelly of the city, gripped in fear of a gang that rules the area because of their ties to a Mexican cartel known for operating in the area, gives this one a strong touch as they start to piece together not just the disappearance of her mother but also other members of her recovery space. That causes several others out there who are trying to scare them away from the whole experience as their project drags them into the bizarre truth that everyone is unprepared for, which offers up some intriguing elements and some unexpected reveals about what the actual purpose of the disappearances is to turn the film around. Given that this part has the most action and gore, trying to make the twist play out, these all manage to give this a lot to like. There are some factors that bring it down. The main drawback to the film is a wholly underwhelming finale that, while the series of twists comes about rather surprisingly and makes for a genuinely unexpected twist, gives this a generally confusing series of actions, mostly for the sake of a twist rather than anything else. This has very little connection to the main story and really only serves the point of being shocking and unexpected, but when it tries to tie into the film proper, it never makes any sense and actually brings about several inconsistencies that shouldn't be possible. The other factor here, tying into that issue, is that when it comes time to introduce the main creature into the film, it has so many inconsistencies that make it somewhat difficult to fall in line with what is being presented, which is what brings this one down.
Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Violence.
