rjs-35535

Saw this at TIFF. Wasn't expecting a lot so was very pleasantly surprised. This is a deliberate (some might say slow) and well drawn psychological thriller. We start with a scene that makes little sense and then fast-forward a number of years. There is clearly a mystery here surrounding a crime that was committed some years earlier by the starring character. However, as the movie begins to unfold and the pieces fall into place, the mystery slowly takes shape. As the viewer, we are anxious to see the next piece of the puzzle reveal itself but the movie takes its time and this only adds to the suspense. All the lead characters contribute effectively to the tension which builds throughout. Peter Spence, in a secondary role as the parole officer adds some much-needed humour to the scenes in which he appears. The combination of his facial expressions and dialogue elicited much laughter in the theater on the day that I watched the film (I didn't think that beef and black bean sauce could be such an amusing expression). And if you like swans, you will be very happy with a scene about two-thirds of the way into the film. The ending is written so as not to hit the viewer over the head and leaves perhaps a number of questions which my wife and I discussed as we walked out of the theater into the bright daylight of the fading summer. A real little gem!