Restraint

This okay but nothing to write home about. It just drags on and on, it doesn't really hook you so that you want to see what happens next. Talk about Debbie Downers, the depressed wife is enough to bring anybody down, even the viewers. It's so slow and there is so little character development that you don't care that much what happens. Pass this by unless you want to nod out.

When I stumbled upon "Restraint" I hadn't even heard about it, nor did I know who was in it. But the movie's cover seemed interesting and it being a thriller definitely did help sell it to me.

I sat down to watch "Restraint" with no expectations. And now that it has finished, I must admit that I sit here somewhat feeling like 'was that really it?' I felt like director and writer Adam Cushman left so many unanswered questions and really didn't bring the movie full circle.

There were elements to "Restraint" that were rather interesting, just a shame that the script and storyline proved to be so slow paced, because that really deflated the rest of the movie, as it suffered from a stunted and hindered progression.

I can't claim to be familiar with the acting performances of Caitlyn Folley prior to "Restraint", but she carried this movie quite well with her performance. Just a shame that she didn't have a proper script to allow her to unfold her full potential. I don't think I've seen Dana Ashbrook in anything since the original "Twin Peaks", so it was sort of fun to watch him on the screen again.

"Restraint" was hardly an impressive movie, given the fact that the storyline served as an anchor dragging the movie down. It failed to adequately entertain me, and I must admit that my attention was failing a couple of times throughout the prolonged duration of this movie.

The storyline felt too forced and too generic, it there was no ups or downs to the movie, it just trotted on along a straight forward path with no twists or turns, which made for a less than mediocre movie experience.

Squandered potential, that is really how the movie can be summarized.

This movie warms you up for quite a lot of it's run time. It's a good warm up, but it's slow. I think this is absolutely worth your time if you are someone who watches a lot of movies. I'm glad I watched this one. Check out my other reviews to see if your taste jives with mine.

Recommended.

I was expecting this film to explore the male/female dialectic. What caught me was the story of a fragile woman under the thrall of an older "controlling" man. So, the sex in their relationship I could relate to, great for him, endurable for her. But it seems that she forbade him a true sexual and loving union in bed. I did not see him as the villain there or, frankly anywhere else. He persevered in trying to understand what was going on with her. If she was to portray what women should be, shoot...thinking this movie was a male, pretending to be, enlightened.

Unfortunately we don't really know any of the background to the main character. They mention her going off some basic SSRI medication nothing that would be prescribed for someone completely off the rails. Could see a wealthy older man marrying a younger woman to care for the kid and be a companion after his wife smartly fled. The daughter was great and gave a very haunting performance. The main character just didn't do it for me. Her tattoo on her shoulder was a hideous distraction and I have a hard time buying her mental illness spiral. Husband was unsympathetic and his demise was expected. The music was overwhelming and used too much for effect. Overall a watchable but pretty average story.