7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Movie, September 30, 2005
This movie is a really good movie. It is about four friends who when they were younger make a mistake and now in adulthood have to cope with it. It mainly revolves around Marc Worden's and Arliss Howard's character Ivan. Both did an amazing job in this picture. This movie has two sets of cast, the younger characters, and the older characters. All actors did great, especially the emtional scenes. I give this movie 5 stars for being original and having good actors to pull it off, definately recomend.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well crafted psychological drama, April 17, 2000
This review is from: The Lesser Evil [VHS] (VHS Tape)
This film was one of the best I've seen of its kind in quite some time. This is a psychological drama about four friends, who 22 years ago unintentionally committed a double homicide and then successfully covered it up. Now the police have discovered one of the bodies and a gun they can link to one of the four. The story unfolds as the friends, who haven't spoken since the event, come together to decide how to handle the situation. Throughout the drama, the story flashes back to the original story when they were teenagers, so you really have two suspenseful interconnected stories unfolding simultaneously.
The film shows the twisted judgments made by desperate men in a crisis situation. It was difficult not to be asking oneself, `What would I do in that situation?' I really only had one plot criticism and that is why did the police not ask about the destroyed TV set? If you see the film, you will know what I mean.
The film was excellent in almost every regard. The story was gripping with numerous plot twists that kept the viewer guessing as to what would happen next, all the way to the end. The portrayals of these frantic characters on the brink of distraction, desperately trying to come up with a solution that would keep them out of jail was riveting. The direction and photography was very good, without the need for special sets or effects.
The acting was terrific. Colm Fiore was outstanding as Derek, the owner of the gun who was being questioned by the police. He plays a character who is simultaneously terrified, despondent, angry and devious and switches back and forth between these states flawlessly. David Paymer gives the best performance I've seen by him to date as the underhanded lawyer trying to shift blame away from himself. Even Tony Goldwyn, who often comes off a little stiff, gave an excellent performance.
The acting by the young cast was also marvelous. It was a commendable job by casting and director David MacKay to find four actors who resembled the older actors so much and still had the talent to play their parts so convincingly. Of these, Marc Worden who played young Ivan was a particualar standout.
MacKay's best accomplishment was his ability to convincingly draw the right emotional mix out of the cast. The hand held flight scenes in the woods were well done and enhanced the dramatic effect. There was one scene with George (David Paymer) brandishing a hand gun that was done with a wide angle lens that was a bit amateurish (it made it look like he was holding a howitzer), but otherwise the camera work was well done with visual perspectives that enhanced the impact of the scenes.
MacKay's weaving of the two stories (past and present) in post production was masterful and kept the film moving at breakneck speed. Just when you needed an explanation to put some present event in context, there was the next flashback, as if the director anticipated the questions the viewer was asking himself.
Overall, this was a taut, well crafted film. It was great to see a low budget independent film with so much entertainment value. I gave it a 9/10. Hunt it down and find it. You won't regret it.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A well crafted suspense indie, September 6, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: The Lesser Evil [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Four old friends reunite due to an urget plea. The police have found evidence that reopens a forgotten investigation. Now, after several twists and turns, someone is going to die, and take the fall for tragic events that happened twenty years before.A solid cast takes us through the story of what makes and breaks a friendship. The film effectivly uses flashbacks to throw us to the 1970's, where we meet a group of high school boys and then lets the violent events slowly unfold there. This is juxtaposed with the present situation involving the effects of the police investigation on our now grown-up foursome. A low budget does not hurt this intelligent film and it comes off without many rough edges.It had me guessing right up to the very end.
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