The trauma from family tragedy is key sometimes to conflict in drama – and Justin Foia’s directorial debut POINT DEFIANCE, from a script he co-wrote with brother Timothy, focuses on dark secrets and perspectives in a Seattle, Washington State community.
Under house arrest, stockbroker Peter Allen (Derek Phillips) is dealing with stocks and shares on his laptop. He remains confined to his house and welcomes the isolation. However, when his brother Alex (Josh Crotty) turns up unannounced at his house back to Afghanistan where he has been serving in the military, a few darker feelings begin to surface, partly down to the abusive father and passive mother they once shared.
Their brotherly bond is already at breaking point, which gets tested much further than Alex uses online dating websites to call a girl, Crystal (Lauren Elaine), who arrives at the house to entertain the pair. Peter is increasingly uncomfortable with the sudden arrival of his brother who seems to be making him a stranger in his own home.
Meanwhile, the disappearance of a local girl has made the local news, but Alex has become agitated. The arrival of a couple of local detectives, Barnes (Sarah Butler, the remake of I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE, I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE 3), and Fripp (Steven Swadling) who are keen to get to the bottom of the girl vanishing from the area, has also thrown Peter’s own mind-set into overdrive.
When Peter sees Alex sleepwalking and talking to himself in the living room one night, far deeper and darker secrets begin to surface….
A deeply psychological thriller, with some fairly bloody and shocking moments on occasion, POINT DEFIANCE has appeal to fans of TRUE DETECTIVE amongst other TV successes. Sarah Butler is a revelation here and a complete contrast from her role as the rape victim Jennifer Hills in the hard-hitting I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE films, portraying a thorough and straight-talking female detective with depth and passion and will help her get away from being typecast in a such a strong and explicit role as she was in I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE.
You might spot where this is going, but it is well-structured and thought out, with great potential from all concerned.
