Wreckers

Families, relatives and neighbours in small townships have always something to hide - even if it is nice and calm on the surface. Not very novel, and all this has been depicted "in bulk", thus twists and new angles would be appropriate to make a related film catchy, or not lopsided at least. Alas, I found no such event or trigger in Wreckers, most of occurrences were predictable, paving the way for summarising, yet trivial ending. Luckily the film lasted ca 1 hour 20 minutes only.

It is good that all leading performances are good: Claire Foy as Dawn, Benedict Cumberbatch as David, Shaun Evans as Nick; I began to focus on them soon, as the plot and directing did not captivate me. When the credits appeared, I felt glad that Cumberbatch has been noticed internationally with more versatile roles in more challenging works. Films like Wreckers are just films for art sake - or vice versa, too day-to-day, and for limited audience.

All is not as it appears. Quite a dark movie with character clues that need a bit of studying. Overall a film that held my attention, though the volume of the dialogue was way too low at times. Would be almost impossible for any not familiar with Brit accents.

Those who, like us, are always hungering for fresh Cumberbatch might want to give this one a look. It's a bit like an updated version of a D.H. Lawrence story ("The Fox"?) or maybe one of those tales of depraved country life that are satirized in "Cold Comfort Farm." Time sequence and plot mechanics are sometimes a little vague; the contrast between the leisurely, naturalistic buildup and the stark, abrupt resolution ("at one fellow swoop" as a Netflix reviewer adorably put it) was a little unsettling as well. First-rate performances and camera-work, interesting locations. BC fans not fond of arty, impressionistic films should prob'ly stay away.

There is something missing from this movie. It has potential but just misses the mark with so many unanswered questions.

Dictynna Hood's film 'Wreckers' tells the story of a seemingly happy marriage put under stress when the husband's rather intense brother pays a visit. The strange character of the visitor turns out to be rooted in a dark family past and the deeply ambiguous nature of the relationship of the siblings both to each other, and to the place where they grew up. The film captures the awkwardness of human interaction well, but struggles a bit on motivations: the inside of the husband's mind remains closed to us, and a pair of unlikely sexual encounters each just happen. Perhaps telling the tale from the perspective of the relatively normal wife is the error here, but although the subject material is highly emotive, I struggled to connect with the story at an emotional level.