Bent

Writer/Director/Producer Brad Douglas & Uncork'd Entertainment have released a new film called 'Bent' written in conjunction with David D. Jones and Clint Lawrence. You may recognize Douglas's name from other films he's made like 'Besetment' (2017) and 'Badfish' (2024). This film involves a determined woman who's willing to masquerade as an FBI agent to get to the bottom of a missing person's "cold case" involving a young girl (her niece) in the town of Green Springs, Oregon. Suffice to say, things go from bad to weird when some severe weather forces her to seek shelter with a peculiar older couple in their cabin-like home. I think where this small Indy movie stands out is the excellent performances of its leads, mainly Abby Waltham as "Nora Summers", Marlyn Mason "Elsie Coleman" and Clive Rosengren as "Ben Coleman." Douglas has a knack for pulling "big picture performances" out of his cast in smaller, Indy films like 'Bent.' There is also a subtle undercurrent of humor in this and his other movies that make me always look forward to viewing them. While the plot of 'Bent' couldn't be described as "groundbreaking", it is interesting and well-executed for the entire (rather brief) run-time of 1h 8min. 'Bent' is worthwhile viewing and a fun night streaming in the home theater. The Oregon scenery is breathtaking and the film gets my recommendation.