Despite warnings from the law to get out of town, Fogarty expands his harassment of Tom by following his family around. Fogarty's confrontation in a shopping mall with Edie is unsettling for her, yet plants a seed of just how far he is willing to go with his strong conviction. "You should ask Tom how come he's so good at killing people," Fogarty suggests.
Edie and Tom begin to fear how this volatile scenario will play out, with Fogarty continuing to press the issue by paying a visit to the family's home. Where the story goes from there is best left to be revealed upon viewing, so I'll say no more about it.
While the actors do a good job at showing different shades of their characters, as well as the impact of violence on this particular family, the movie suffers from a sluggish pace at times. Plus, the realization that violence begets violence is hardly a revelation. That's not to say that the violence in the film isn't occasionally shocking in its swiftness. It's just that some of the scenes lack an underlying credibility.
Still, carrying a number of violent confrontations during the movie's running time, Cronenberg strikes just the right chord with its concluding scene. It also ranks as the film's quietest, as nary a word is spoken. But what it says in silence speaks volumes.
Grade: B
(Rated R for brutal violence, graphic sexuality, nudity, language and some drug use.)
Article comments
1 - Scott Butki
I liked this movie but didn't love it.
I am still thinking on whether what he did worked.