Reviewer: Pierre Badiola
Director: Frank Mosley
Cast: Robby Storey, Stephanie Rhodes
HOLD is a mature study on the disruptive effect of home invasion and sexual assault on a young, suburban married couple. During it’s lean 83 minute runtime we observe mainly through the perspective of the husband their attempts to reconnect with life and each other. Laura, the victim, is all too keen to revert back to the way things were whilst Alan, driven by suspicion, frustration and the need to play the male-protectorate, becomes increasingly unhinged.
Thankfully, in stark contrast to exploitative rape/revenge films such as Straw Dogs, Irreversible and I Spit On Your Grave, the plot does not unfold in a sensationalist manner. We only see the aftermath of the crime that took place, the details of which are left explained in a stark, unflinching monologue given by Laura directly to the camera. Images of smashed glass become all the more poignant given the unknowable horror of the crime.
Director Frank Mosley often employs long takes as well as tightly focused cinematography in order to draw tension and isolation, and what results is a considerate pacing that is unafraid to linger in the silence that begins to fill Alan and Laura’s lives. We are sometimes privy to intimate personal moments as they both search their fractured relationship for signs of normality: a smile, a laugh, a touch — these scenes in particular were most effective in drawing me into their plight. However I was pleasantly surprised by the bold inclusion of a scene where Laura faces the resulting damage the rapist has left on her body — something I don’t recall being dealt with as devastatingly on film before.
The overarching themes of deterioration within a picture-perfect suburbia shows influences of Todd Hayne’s Safe, and a long shot of the front of their home that is mirrored on the film’s website brings to mind Michael Haneke’s home invasion story Caché. The website also has a perpetually looping background sound-effect of birds chirping intertwined with police sirens, a detail that is probably incidental but unsettling nonetheless.
Some scenes appear to hint at larger concerns with chauvinism, the role of faith as a healing force and the acclimatising of a victim back into society, but the keen focus on Alan’s insecurities plays well given the small cast, preferring character and mood to drive story rather than extraneous scripting. Frank Mosley clearly knows how to explore mature ideas with great skill and I hope he has many more features to come.
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