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The fifth indie project from writer/director Dave Boyle, the film takes us into a twisting, slowly building, crime drama involving a small-town sheriff, a fiction writer, and an investigation into international crime. In a county outside of San Francisco, Sheriff Paul Del Moral (Pepe Serna) first gets involved while traveling a darkened, fog-enshrouded road on his way home, happening first upon an abandoned vehicle and, subsequently, it’s sole occupant just a few yards down the way, sparking a full investigation tied to a possible homicide. Meanwhile, successful Japanese crime fiction writer, Aki (Ayako Fujitani), has snuck away from her homeland to come and seek needed respite in San Francisco from the pressures of book writing and the notoriety she doesn’t actually relish. Staying at a local hotel, Aki meets the charismatic Akira (Kazuki Kitamura) with whom she soon begins a relationship with. However, when Akira vanishes without a trace the very next morning, leaving only a suitcase behind, a deeper and more perilous mystery ensues, prompting Aki and Del Moral’s paths to intersect. Soon, like the novels she has written for so long, Aki begins to dig more into Akira’s disappearance, even as it becomes evident that not only are people watching her, but a greater, more involved scheme is in play that she has become an unwitting accomplice in. And as everything comes to a head, unanticipated twists and revelations will bring to light what elements are really in play, and the hunt to catch an elusive criminal yields deadly results.
Blending elements via Hitchcockian-influenced devices, cinematic pulp fiction, and tense, modern crime factors, the final product we’re given is a fantastically woven, intelligent mystery film delivered with a slow burn in which the payoff will either greatly irritate or extremely satisfy. The interweaving plot and engaging characters add to the appeal along with the multi-faceted, but ultimately unified, narrative that keeps one contemplating what is going to be divulged next. Serna is wonderful in his portrayal of Del Moral, giving him the level of old school know-how added to a detective’s instincts that are utilized and pushed to their fullest extent in determining all the clues associated with the investigation at hand. Fujitani has a quiet intensity as Aki, who’s scared and vulnerable, yet stronger than she seems, and whose own sense of “playing detective” comes out as well, an almost after effect of the novels she’s written. Additionally, Kitamura shines as lovable rogue Akira, whose penchant for wooing women equals his other talents that only get revealed over time, and constantly leave one surmising that he is more adept at deception than we realize, even when it would appear the jig is up. Solid supporting turns from Derrick O’Connor, Elisha Skorman, and others assist in rounding out the story, but this really does belong to the three leads. In total, a wonderful, fresh entry into the indie film world that once again proves why appealing characters and intriguing stories are king.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
