There
are two kinds of thrillers, the tony kind that pit rivals against each other
for inheritances and swiss bank accounts, and the grungy sort, whose characters
kill one another for spite and pocket change. This is the latter kind. In Castlegar,
BC, everyone knows who Allison Miller is—and boy is it ever a drag. However,
she will fight like a wolverine to protect her punky brother in Scooter Corkle’s
Hollow in the Land (trailer here), which opens this
Friday in New York.
Miller’s
father Keith was notorious even before he drunkenly plowed down the teen son of
the wealthiest family in town. Rather awkwardly, she still works at the mill
they own. With their mother long gone, Allison must assume head-of-household
responsibilities, but her delinquent younger brother Brandon does not make it
easier. As a kicker, she also faces provincial prejudices for her lesbian
relationship with the divorced and often harassed mother of Brandon’s
girlfriend, Sophie Hinters.
Evidently,
the thuggish Earl Hinters violently interrupted Brandon and Sophie in a moment
of intimacy, so Miller’s brother inevitably becomes the prime suspect in old
man Hinters’ subsequent murder. Knowing his family history is stacked against
him, Brandon takes to the wind, leaving Allison to try to make sense of the
case. Despite the sheriff’s attempts to intimidate her, she quickly discovers
another mystery person was present that fateful night—most likely the same
person who phoned the tip to Hinters, bringing him out there to his death.
Hollow is solidly
effective small-town thriller that also incorporates quite a bit of social
realism. Castlegar looks wonderfully picturesque if you run an internet image search, but Corkle paints a decidedly grimmer picture. Regardless, he makes us
feel how completely alone Miller is, on a direct and personal level.
Dianna
Agron is hardly an unknown quantity due her television credits, but her work in
Hollow will earn her some second
looks and second thoughts. She is terrific as the weary, somewhat self-destructive
blue-collar protagonist. She carries the picture and stands her ground, despite
fearlessly depicting Miller’s myriad faults and weaknesses. In contrast, most
viewers would be unable to pick out the actor who plays Brother Brandon (or
most of the other unsavory dudes) out of line-up, half an hour after watching Hollow. Oddly enough, one of the supporting
players who really registers is Jessica McLeod, who plays Freya, a reluctant
witness to related shenanigans—a significant role, but one with relatively
limited screen time.
Hollow does not exactly
break new ground, but its grit and guts are compelling. Norm Li’s coldly severe
cinematography dramatically accentuates Miller’s social alienation and the
physical isolation of the surrounding landscape. It is not quite on a level
with Wind River, but it is still a good
film. Recommended for fans of naturalistic thrillers, Hollow in the Land opens this Friday (12/8) in New York, at the
Cinema Village.