Dir: Chris Gorak, UK, 2006, 96 mins
Cast: Mary McCormack, Rory Cohrane
Review by Becky Day
Chris Gorak kicks off his debut writing/directing feature by dirty bombing downtown Los Angeles. We follow Brad (Cochrane) as he goes through the nightmare of knowing his wife is in danger or even dead and unable to do anything about it. He tries to run out and find her, but the town is cordoned off and he is told to go home and seal up the openings so as not to breathe in the air. Thus, when his dishevelled wife shows up on his doorstep, he is caught in the helpless situation of either, letting his wife in and being infected as well or go through the agony of watching her condition worsen right outside his door.
It’s an interesting, very topical concept especially with all the recent bombings in Iraq and London. Acts of terrorism could technically be right around the corner, so it really struck a chord with the audience in that respect. There were a few flaws in the plot; Brad is out and willing to search for his wife in the disaster zone and is emotionally distraught then a day later his dishevelled wife shows up at his doorstep and does not react in the manner the audience has been lead to expect. There are also too many scenes in which the characters are merely pacing, thinking or crying, which is Gorak’s way of portraying how drawn out and powerless they are. Yet by doing so, he slows the action to such a rate that it becomes a little tedious for the viewers.
The film was shot all as naturalistic as possible, with minimal effects (apart from the smoke from the city) making this picture feel a lot more like a documentary. It was pretty hard work enduring some of it, but just as your attention is about to slip you’re hit with another twist that sits you straight back up again.
It has a strange ending and leaves you feeling a little discontented, but that is the point. I just feel it would have had just as much impact being a half hour piece instead of an hour and a half feature. Gorak had a good idea and hopefully his next one will be just as importantly themed but better paced.
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