TIFF EXCLUSIVE
The Reach
Director: Jean-Baptiste Leonetti
by Alex Watson
Imagine if you will, being stuck in the most unforgiving terrain on earth! You have no shelter and literally you are having to run and survive. Movies such as The Grey, Walkabout and Life of Pi showed us both the hardship and the psychological trauma that comes with such a journey. Yesterday (through some fortunate coincidences) I managed I secure a ticket for the World Premier of Jean-Baptiste Leonetti' film The Reach at the Princess of Wales Theatre! Set in the Mojave desert, this thriller has temperatures that are set to rise.
Ben (Jeremy Irvine) is hired to accompany rich and arrogant business man John Madec (Michael Douglas) on a hunting trip in the Mojave Desert. Whilst they are there, John accidentally kills a local man while blindsided by the sun. Although horrified, Ben is forced to assist in deposing of the body when Madec blackmails him. But when he reneges on the deal, Madec becomes enraged and sets out to murder him by making Ben wander the unforgiven terrain exposed to the burning heat!
Despite a few neat moments, The Reach is a dull and pretty predictable thriller by Leonetti. Beautifully shot by Russell Carpenter against the scorching landscape of the Mojave Desert, this one element does succeed in making the unforgiving terrain as the ultimate enemy of the picture. Leonetti's thriller starts out interestingly enough, as we open on a scared and burned Irvine running frantically through the desert. When Madec is introduced, instantly he gives off a negative vibe with his expensive looking jeep which a variety of quirky bells and whistles. But although he looks the part, Madec is essentially just a gun touting version of Gordon Gekko!
When the cat and mouse game begins, the picture begins to develop a flat and uninviting taste. There is no real hint or menace or plausible threat in the interactions between the two men. When the big incident happens, Ben barely puts up a fight and then seems to willingly wander into the desert. After a while, Madec foiling Ben at every turn with his super vehicle becomes frustrating! Leonetti tries his hardest to raise this thriller to a competent level, but his direction in this one just feels very wayward and not helped by some painful comical dialogue by Stephen Susco, "Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice, I KILL YOU!!!!"
Also the logic gets confused very early on in The Reach and viewers may find themselves sniggering in disbelief at any number of incomprehensible scenarios. For example, at point Ben whilst navigating a hidden cave, just so happens to stumble into the living quarter of a man he used to know! These moments would seem more plausible if the movie had more going for it, but in this case they just come over as very poor story planning. Also things are not helped by a terminally silly ending which even the most open minded person will have trouble swallowing.
Michael Douglas tries to finds his joy where he can as John Madec, but even he cannot find a rhythm to succeed in this moment. His character is one with a variety of tricks (including a loud speaker) but he is not able to command any real intimidation and instead comes off as a smug rich man getting his kicks. Jeremy Irvine is equally stranded in a thankless role as Ben. His character is not giving a quality that endears him to the audience and although a talented young man, Irvine spends majority of his time just running around revealing his torso!
The Reach is a movie that may have a name attached, but it is unlikely to get a wide distribution outside of festival screenings. Leonetti shows some visual flair but his weak direction cannot take the film where it needs to be. Though this may come in handy as a survival guide for those wanting to trek through the desert.
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