Unlimitedia Sick Product of a Sick System

Listonixio Fresh and Exciting

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Calum Hutton It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

SnoopyStyle Michael Adler (Aaron Stanford) is struggling to cope under the supervision of Dr. Maxim (Terry Kinney). He runs away with his younger brother Dylan from his parents (Melissa Leo, Michael Gaston). He works at a convenience store with foul-mouthed Carly (Robin Tunney) and owner Mo (Peter Gerety).It's a low budget indie. Stanford does a quiet compelling character although I would have wanted him to act out more. I want him to hint at the ultimate twist. The movie in general needs a few more visceral clues. It needs to amp up the tension so that the final twist fits better. It could have dug into his personal strive and given him a license to act out. Carly is a fun character. She saves this from being too low energy. Her relationship with Michael is great. She has one amazing scene. There is just a need for more foreboding in the tone.

green_faeries ***May contain spoilers***I came to this relatively unknown film as a new Aaron Stanford fan (thank 12 monkeys). Echoing some of the good points raised by fellow peer reviews, the acting and cinematography was sensitive in a low key way, and largely free from sensationalism and gratuitous voyeurism; given the subject.Much credit should also go to the people who selected the music for the film. I feel that the soundtrack really built the right mood and atmosphere, and lent the right level of ennui and beauty to the film.I do have a slight bone to pick on the narrative, namely that 'a person with a damaged past becomes a danger to others and themselves, in spite of efforts and appearances'. Mental and emotional distress, no matter how traumatic, does not necessarily create monsters. It's important to remember that many people will recover from trauma to go on to be successful/passable people socially, emotionally, etc.I supported the work of some serious psychotherapists working with some fairly distressed and abused young people for a year and heard many stories. But these did not happen to include cases of dissociative disorder as portrayed in this film (and revealed at the end) - where someone can block out so completely their reality and replace it with a version which omits what they have done so convincingly and consistently, whilst being such a charming, pleasant and sensitive soul in their delusional state. Usually damage reveals itself with some levels of behavioural problems, which Aaron Stanford's character seemed to lack any ones of concern.It might be the case that this could happen, but it is so important that people know it would be the rarest of cases. It would be really sad to meet someone so likable but so irredeemable at the same time in real life. It is important that those who have experienced past abuse don't feel that others would suspect they have been made dangerous by their experience. Still, strong and believable acting performances by Aaron Stanford, Robin Tunney, and Zach Savage.

drpakmanrains Boy! This was a gripping and very well acted and written film about a very difficult subject, namely the effect of child molestation on its victims. For what appears to be an extremely low budget film, I was as intensely involved as I have been in any film in a long time. So why did I only give this film a 7? Because of the surprising ending. I realize sometimes a shocking ending can make an otherwise mediocre film worth while, like in the 1970's little seen shocker "The Baby", but in this film, after so much pain and difficulty, I was hoping for an upbeat or at least hopeful ending. It left me so let down that, despite its cleverness, I felt deflated and even depressed. I can't imagine this film finding much audience beyond the festival circuit, no matter how much it deserves to be admired. I don't have to have a Hollywood ending, but a little sliver of something hopeful would have helped.

xletxmexgox Wow. Being a fan of Aaron Stanford, I'd spent almost two years looking for this movie before it came out on Netflix. Firstly, let me say the only reason I didn't give this movie a ten out of ten was the ages of the boys. I think Aaron Stanford could have pulled off seventeen or eighteen (since he did it in the X-men movies), rather than have him at twenty-one. That was a little unbelievable. Being a pedophile, his father would have moved on long before he turned twenty-one. But other than that, this movie grabs you from the start. The abuse scenes are done in a very tactful manner, unlike some movies I've seen where they try to make a porno out of molestation or rape. We see just enough to let us know what's going on, and that's it. And the ending was amazing. I pride myself on being able to correctly guess the ending of a movie nine times out of ten. This ending was nowhere close to what I expected. Over all, it's not a tear-jerker per say. And it's not a happy movie. There's no 'happy ending'. It's a serious, sad look at the life of a young man whose life has been ruined by years of abuse. Other than the age thing, it's a gritty, realistic movie that just tugs at your heart. The acting was amazing. Again, I was an Aaron Stanford fan for a while before this, but after watching this... Just wow. He pulled it with flying colors. Zach Savage and Peter Gerety were also pretty good. Robin Tunney wasn't bad, just... some of her lines seemed too rushed. Most of it was very good, but a few lines (the one where she reveals her scars being an example) she just seemed to plough through them. But still... If you like realistic looks into the aftermath of abuse, this is an excellent film.