LAKE CITY
Written & Directed by Hunter Hill & Perry Moore
Produced by Donna L. Bascom, Mike S. Ryan & Allison Sarofim
Written by
Released by Screen Media Films
Language
USA. 92 min.  Rated R
With Troy Garity, Sissy Spacek, Rebecca Romijn, Dave Matthews, Keith Carradine, Colin Ford, Barry Corbin & Drea De Matteo
 

A film with a well-paced story is so satisfying to watch, and this offering from first-timers Hunter Hill and Perry Moore, despite some disappointing turns, at least deserves attention in this regard. Tory Garity plays Billy, whose trouble with a dangerous drug dealer (musician Dave Matthews) forces him to flee to his mother’s Virginia homestead farm with Clayton (Colin Ford), his girlfriend’s adolescent son. 

What at first reads as nostalgia—flashbacks of children playing—is eventually and nicely revealed as the memory of a specific event from Billy’s past, while the revelation of the identity of Clayton’s real father and Billy’s alcohol addiction are likewise unpredictably, but effectively timed. Most of the best moments come when his long-suffering mother (Sissy Spacek), unable to keep her disappointments of her son’s failures silent, reaches out to her son.

Unfortunately, what may have had the makings of a solid and engaging story is destroyed in the final act by a ridiculous shift in genre. Suddenly, a heartfelt drama transforms into an action film when the gangsters finally catch up to Billy and the kid. Granted, the filmmakers telegraph the change in an opening scene—a sorry rendition of a warehouse interrogation where Billy barely escapes with his life, synched to the rhythm of ham-fisted chase music.

That scene, at first, appears to be a singularity, as a more intelligent and yes, well paced, drama continues along. But when the realities of Billy’s big-city life catch up to him in this sleepy town, the action is laughable. Too many gunshots riddle the closing scenes, and whatever emotional reconciliation Billy and his mother may have been approaching is forgotten amid a barrage of new plot developments. Suddenly, this story is about nothing more than a drug deal gone wrong and a daring escape from dangerous thugs.

Garity and Academy Award-winner Spacek do sculpt original performances out of a solid—if rather familiar—melodrama. Rock star Dave Matthews, as the quirky, conflicted villain, surprises with his acting chops, in contrast to former model Rebecca Romijn. In previous roles featuring her noted physical beauty (X-Men, Femme Fatale), she has certainly delivered, but in Lake City, the challenge of playing a small-town police officer and recovering alcoholic finds her flat and uninspired. Creative casting certainly doesn’t save this immature film. Michael Lee
November 21, 2008