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Ben Young’s thriller movie Devil’s Peak is based on a book by David Joy and stars a talented cast, including Billy Bob Thornton and Robin Wright. However, poor direction and a disastrous script sabotage any of the suspense or interest that the story could have had, and instead, we’re left with a half-hearted attempt where the majority of the characters are unconvincing. Here’s what happens in the 2023 thriller Devil’s Peak.

Spoilers Ahead

Why Did Charlie Kill The Two Men?

The movie opens with a scene from the climax, where a nervous-looking Jacob parks himself behind a car and aims at an oncoming car with a Bb gun. We’re then taken back a few days in the story, where we’re met with Charlie McNeely, a drug kingpin who’s apparently feared around the mountainous little town of Devil’s Peak in North Carolina, and we’re also introduced to his son,...

The dynamics between fathers and sons, and whether the younger generation can ever escape the family legacy, is at the heart of “Devil’s Peak.” It’s apt then that director Ben Young cast Hopper Penn — son of Sean — as his lead. In this adaptation of David Joy’s novel “Where All Light Tends to Go,” the father, Charlie (Billy Bob Thornton), is a drug lord in North Carolina’s Appalachian Mountains, with a firm grip on his son’s life and livelihood. Jacob (Penn) works as a runner for his dad, while the latter withholds his wages, thus totally controlling his son. Young and screenwriter Robert Knott build on these intriguing family dynamics to create an entertaining drama that’s unfortunately let down by its lead performance.

The conflict between father and son takes hold when Jacob falls for a local woman (Katelyn Nacon) at the same time that Charlie...

Screen Rant is proud to present an exclusive clip from the new drama, Devil's Peak. Set in the Appalachian Mountains, this tense thriller from Screen Media follows the son of a domineering and violent drug lord. When he meets the girl of his dreams, he finally finds a reason to try and escape from under his father's shadow before following in his criminal footsteps. But he won't escape unscathed and will need to confront his father face-to-face, and the terrifying patriarch will stop at nothing to force loyalty from everyone around him.

Devil's Peak is based on David Joy's first novel, Where All Light Tends to Go. The novel was a finalist for the Edgar Award for Best First Novel. Devil's Peak hits theaters on February 17 and will be available on demand on February 24.

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More About Devil's Peak...

Billy Bob Thornton in Devil’s Peak Photo: Screen Media Films The right cast can make a plodding film watchable, an Ok film good, and a good film great. One reason actors like Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep are so beloved, for instance, is because they can elevate something that’s otherwise predictable and bland.

Exclusive: Screen Media has acquired North American rights to the crime thriller Devil’s Peak, starring Academy Award winner Billy Bob Thornton (The Gray Man), Golden Globe winner Robin Wright (Wonder Woman 1984), Hopper Penn (War Machine) and Academy Award nominee Jackie Earle Haley (Watchmen).

The film picked up by the Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment company will be released exclusively in theaters on February 17, with a digital release to follow on February 24.

The film directed by Ben Young (Hounds of Love) is based on the novel Where All Light Tends to Go by David Joy. Set in the Appalachian Mountains, it watches as a family is dominated by a crime lord (Thornton) who uses his fists to control both them and his business. When his son (Penn) meets the girl of his dreams (Katelyn Nacon), desperately wanting to escape the life he is expected to lead and free himself...

Exclusive: The cast of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer continues to grow, with Harrison Gilbertson (Picnic at Hanging Rock) and Emma Dumont (Licorice Pizza) signing on for roles.

They join an ensemble led by Cillian Murphy that also includes Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon, Rami Malek, Benny Safdie, Josh Hartnett, Dane DeHaan, Jack Quaid, Matthew Modine, Dylan Arnold, David Krumholtz, Alden Ehrenreich, David Dastmalchian, Olli Haaskivi, Jason Clarke, James D’Arcy, Michael Angarano, Guy Burnet and Danny Deferrari, as previously announced.

In the film, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin, Murphy plays the theoretical physicist whose work on the Manhattan Project led to the atomic bomb. The film is a paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.

Nolan is directing...

Exclusive: Harrison Gilbertson, Katelyn Nacon and David Kallaway have joined the cast of Where All Light Tends to Go. Billy Bob Thornton, Robin Wright, Hopper Penn, Jackie Earle Haley, Brian D’arcy James and Emma Booth are also starring.

Ben Young will direct with and Robert Knott penning the script based on David Joy’s novel. The film will be produced by Griff Furst of Curmudgeon Films, Josh Kesselman of Thruline Entertainment and Wright. Ruth Bornhauser will co-produce.

Based on the David Joy novel, the story is set in North Carolina’s Appalachian Mountains, where Jacob McNeely is torn between appeasing his meth-dealing kingpin father and leaving the mountains forever with the girl he loves. Kallaway will also co-produce.

Gilbertson will be seen next in Amazon Studios’ The Peripheral. His other recent credits include Picnic at Hanging Rock and In the Tall Grass. He is repped by Anonymous Content and Helen Pandos Management.

Exclusive: Emma Booth, Brian d’Arcy James and Jackie Earle Haley have joined the cast of Where All Light Tends To. Ben Young will direct with and Robert Knott penning the script based on David Joy’s novel.

They join the previously announced leads Billy Bob Thornton, Robin Wright and Hopper Penn. Production began November 1st in Atlanta, Georgia.

The film will be produced by Griff Furst of Curmudgeon Films, Josh Kesselman of Thruline Entertainment and Wright. Ruth Bornhauser will co-produce. Based on the David Joy novel, the story is set in North Carolina’s Appalachian Mountains, where Jacob McNeely is torn between appeasing his meth-dealing kingpin father and leaving the mountains forever with the girl he loves.

Booth can be seen next in the Anonymous Content TV Studios adaptation of Proxy. She is repped by represented by Anonymous Content and Shanahan Management.

James can be seen next in as Officer...