A routine thriller for most of its running time, director
Deon Taylor's film becomes increasingly trashy before ending with the
justification of a profoundly immoral act in which viewers are meant to revel.
A prosperous San Francisco couple (Michael Ealy and Meagan Good) plan to move
to the Napa Valley and start a family. But the creepy owner (Dennis Quaid) of
the charming, ivy-covered home they buy has not reconciled himself to
relinquishing it and keeps turning up uninvited. In a performance that ranges
from intense to over-the-top, Quaid grimaces and smolders as screenwriter David
Loughery's script has his character teeter between plausibly pathetic widower
and outright psychopath. But the proceedings are otherwise remarkable only for
the transgression with which they conclude.
Watch out for: Benignly
viewed vigilantism, attempted rape and much other violence with some gore,
semi-graphic marital lovemaking, partial and obscured rear nudity, a scene of
urination, at least one use of profanity and a few milder oaths, a single rough
and several crude terms.
Rated: O, morally offensive;
MPAA: PG-13
© Arlington Catholic Herald 2019