In this movie, a man is traveling by himself in the desert to take some pictures of a solar eclipse. Then he stumbles upon a young boy who claims he is "lost," so the photographer dude tries to help him. However, the boy is leading him in the opposite direction of the guy's car. Right away, I sensed a big red flag. The guy with the camera, however, did not seem to notice that glaring red flag (which I guess is what makes the movie work). So, he is led further and further away from his car and civilization (and cell phone usage), and then the young boy runs off with a smug look on his face like he accomplished something. The photographer guy lays down to spend the night in the desert, shivering. He is out of water and lost. Not good.
Next thing you know, he hears some woman singing. He follows the sound and sees light...and then a long ladder which leads into a pit, which he climbs down! Okay, the red flags are really slapping him in the face by this point, like you would think he would be saying, "Hey. This is NOT a normal situation!" But no matter. He climbs down the ladder into the pit and finds the source of the singing...an off-the-grid woman who offers him food and water. He's grateful, but what bothers me, is that he doesn't ask her any questions. Like, do you live here alone? And...how did you end up here? You know, that sort of thing. Anyway, in the morning when he goes to leave, he notices that the bottom of the ladder is missing so can't climb out of the pit! He tries to climb up the steep almost vertical wall of rock and fails, of course, injuring himself. Okay, now the woman has to care for him.
Does this sound interesting? Well, I thought so. It was kind of a creepy mysterious dilemma going on. Then we see some feral boys standing at the top of the pit shouting some weird language and being overall frightening and menacing. Okay, so now I was really engaged. But the way the woman acted always bugged me. She was so...blah. I wish they had given her some personality. The man keeps trying to get to know her, sort of, but he never seems to ask the right questions, which also bugs me. Like...how the heck did you end up in this situation and why don't you want to do anything about it? And how do you get your food? Then the boys throw some food and supplies down, so that answers that. Okay....weird, right? What is this woman's connection with these feral children in the desert who seem to keep her trapped in the pit, yet don't want to harm her?
So yea...for "pros" with this movie I would say 1. It held my attention. 2. It was very atmospheric. And 3. It was thought provoking, like it definitely imparts the feeling of being hopelessly trapped, and makes you wonder how you would cope in such a situation.
Now, for the cons in this movie: 1). All the bleak, ugly people (both literally and figuratively). 2). The movie makes you feel icky. 3). It has a very unsatisfying ending. 4). There are really no likable characters, although I think the guy who has been trapped...the actor...did a decent enough job. 5). There isn't a lot of character development. 6). Things are not explained, like how did this woman end up in this situation in the first place? What is the background of that? Why is she so accepting about this lack of freedom? And why does the man sometimes act like he is "falling for her" which I find ridiculous? Why does the man have sex with her? Why does the man go back to her and act like he wants to stay with her after he has the opportunity to possibly get away? Why does the man follow the kid in the first place, and why does he climb down that really long treacherous ladder into a pit just to get himself trapped? Why doesn't he see any red flags in all of this?
Would I recommend this movie? That's a hard question. I mean, yea...it held my interest, but ultimately, the ending is so unsatisfying that I would have to say no. Don't bother! It will just leave you feeling so gross and icky. Maybe even a bit depressed. But also, it is a teachable moment as in, do NOT ignore red flags, people!
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