Ethan Denton: Thomas Dekker
After a terrible tragedy involving his 3-year-old son, a young father and a community struggle to come to terms with who is to blame. Angels Crest is heavy stuff. I don’t want to comment too much more or I’d give the rest of it away. Director Gaby Dellal tackles the difficult topic by focusing on the actions of those affected.
Set in small rural community, no one character is central to the story and each are affecting in a different way. The best part of the movie is how seamlessly it shifts from one character to the other. That is also its downfall because too often, I wanted more from each character. The central character of the boy’s father, Ethan (Thomas Dekker, Heroes) didn’t have enough of a buildup to elicit emotion from me. He clearly loved Nate, but I wanted more story leading up to the incident. We could have done without Jeremy Piven’s character, Jack, because he doesn’t really contribute to the story. He seems to have a troubled past, but nothing is explained and his relation to the incident is only eluded to. Angie (Mira Sorvino) owns the town diner and is conflicted but again, she doesn’t have enough time to really engage the audience.
It’s a fantastic story, but one that could have been a mini-series. Although you can relate to the characters, there are just so many that I couldn’t attach myself to any of them. I either needed more time, or less characters. Coming out of it, I kinda felt guilty for not getting emotional.
Angels Crest is playing at the Tribeca Film Festival Monday 4/25 and Wednesday 4/27.
Rating: Sad and disappointing, but great acting. 3/10
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