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THE DEEP END Send This Review to a Friend
An interesting premise for a thriller is frittered away gradually as events become less and less believable in "The Deep End," despite the strong acting talent of Tilda Swinton as a mother who goes to bizarre lengths to protect her son. Co-directors and co-writers Scott McGehee and David Siegel are striving for a contemporary noir inspired by Elizabeth Sanxay Holding's 1940 novel "The Blank Wall," but the requisite tension and suspense are undermined when it becomes difficult to accept the lack of credibility as events build toward the climax.
Margaret (Swinton), the wife of a naval officer at sea on an aircraft carrier, is home at Lake Tahoe and increasingly concerned about the activities of her son Beau (Jonathan Tucker), who is involved in a homosexual relationship. She tries to intervene, and one night her son's lover turns up at the house and there is an outburst of violence which leads to the lover's death. When mom finds the body she goes into action to protect Beau. This leads to her being victimized by a blackmail scheme that makes her dangerously vulnerable and ups the ante.
The directors succeed in creating a strong sense of location, and actor Goran Visnjic as Alek, the key stranger who suddenly becomes crucial for Margaret as well as stirring her romantic impulses, is a welcome presence. It would be unfair to reveal the various points of behavior that I find insufficiently credible at risk of spoiling the story for those who may react more positively. But by the film's resolution, I felt disappointment that despite Swinton's acting and the effort that went into the tale, the end result was a letdown. A Fox Searchlight release.
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