Point Defiance

Director - Justin Foia (Doe, The Double)

Starring - Derek Phillips (Longmire, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.), Josh Crotty (Isle of the Dead, Grimm), and Lauren Elaine (Party Monsters, Criminal Minds)

Release Date - 2020

Genre - Thriller

Tagline - "You can't bury the past"

Format - DVD (Personal Collection) (Screener)

Rating (out of 5):

     I never know what is going to show up for review.  Sometimes I get movies that I've been following for months that I truly want to see and other times I receive movie's that I've never heard of.  Last week I received two movies from Bayview Entertainment to check out.  The first film was a drama titled Waterlily Jaguar that featured an amazing cast but the story took a winddown on the second half.  The second film was the 2020 thriller Point Defiance.  The artwork made me think this one would be painfully generic and not that entertaining.  I was wrong.  I want to thank Bayview for sending this one over.  

     The film follows Peter (Phillips) who is on house arrest for an unknown crime.  His brother Alex (Crotty), a veteran, pays him a surprise visit after the two go more than a year without seeing each other.  Things start out smoothly but soon Alex's erratic behavior leaves Peter on edge.  One night Alex orders an escort and starts drinking which is something Alex is against.  The next day his life is turned upside down when he makes the connection to the escort and a missing woman from the area.  Then his brother's secret business in his barn makes him suspicious.  To make matters worse, the police are now questioning him about her disappearance.  

     I went into this one with an open mind but I wasn't expecting the much.  However, I was very surprised by the film and it's quality.  I enjoyed it for the most part but the final act did make me face palm.  With that aside, I was pleased with the film.  The acting in this one is fucking fantastic.  I loved the two Allen brothers.  Phillips and Crotty worked so well together.  They have great chemistry on film and they absolutely crushed their scenes together.  Honestly, this film would have failed early on if it wasn't for them.  The story for this one has me sold during the first portion of the film but once we enter the third act I found myself rolling my eyes due to the predictability of the story.  The brothers struggling to accept each other and the people they have become was a solid story line.  However, the second part of the film changed that up and delivered a predictable and chaotic story that is not as fun on screen as I'm sure it was on paper.  Finally, the film does have some blood but if you are looking for a straight forward horror flick you will be disappointed.  The film is focused on the story and not blood and gore so true horror fans will not find the effects they are looking for.  Overall, Point Defiance is a solid thriller but the flow of the film is dampered by the predictable twists that are tossed near the ending of the film.  Even the most inexperience genre fans will see these coming from a mile away.  However, that doesn't ruin the film but does take away from the impact.  You can check the movie out on DVD now from Bayview Entertainment.