Directed by Brian Barnard and Tommy Walton, and written by leading actors Randy McDowell and Jody Thompson, a sheriff and deputy probe a crime at an abandoned farmhouse in West Virginia’s coal country. Their investigation uncovers dark secrets that endanger both the town and the sheriff’s grip on reality. Also starring: Ashley Sutton, Bethany Anne Lind and Frank Hoyt Taylor.
Small towns are always a good place to explore trauma and secrets, to have an intimate community where everyone knows everything, and yet there are always secrets lurking around each corner. Brian Barnard and Tommy Walton do a great job of creating an atmosphere which reflects that, it’s tense and adds a permeable feeling of discomfort. It’s shot well, there’s a very solid foundation for the story to be built upon. The problem is that it feels like Down River isn’t sure what type of film it wants to be.
There are some elements that stray into horror territory, even a touch of sci-fi at times, and it’s forever going back and forth between being a dramatic story of trauma and being a thriller. It’s basically impossible to talk about the films Down River is taking influence from, without giving away the story, so avoiding spoilers and putting it simply, it can’t reconcile its dramatic roots with its desire for crime and mystery. It’s a problem that’s then exacerbated by the disappointing progression of the story.
Unfortunately, there’s a rather convoluted nature to the writing, that’s even at times confusing. While you can see the general intention, the execution is slow and unsatisfying. When Down River does finally arrive at its big finale, it doesn’t feel like it makes a great deal of sense, and leaves things on a strange note. The performances from Randy McDowell and Jody Thompson do try to piece things together more strongly, but they can only do so much.
A good portion of Thompson’s performance nicely captures the brokenness and inability to process his trauma. However, there are far too many unsubtle clues as to the nature of his situation so that reveal doesn’t amount to much. It can also feel like at times he’s leaning into the injured nature of his character too much, it becomes slightly fumbling. Whereas McDowell is actually consistent throughout, and he manages to not pigeonhole this character, he leaves him open to suspicion. If he were to make him simply the good guy, it wouldn’t have been as interesting, so being able to have that door open ever so slightly so there’s space to wonder, was a great choice. The friendship between them, and how McDowell’s Shepherd attempts to look out for and protect Thompson’s Ronnie was nicely done.
It feels as though Down River was a case of having eyes bigger than its stomach. It wanted to do so much but explored its story so slowly and in a way that felt convoluted while not getting very far. It gives away a lot early on and doesn’t do enough with the story in its final moments to compensate for that. Mostly the tone is well done but it occasionally gets lost in a haze of being unsure what genre they’re really trying to hit. It’s decently shot, and the performances are strong for the most part but ultimately, it feels messy.
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