Surveillance [DVD]

Within about 5 minutes of starting to watch Surveillance, you could be forgiven for thinking that you are watching another one of David Lynch's weird dissections of American society. However, when you realise that it is directed by his daughter Jennifer and David himself gets a producer credit, it easy to see his hand in much of the proceedings. Coming back from the deservedly critical disaster that was Boxing Helena was never going to be easy for Jennifer, but with Surveillance she has given us an intriguing film that is offbeat drama and dark thriller. When federal officers Sam Hallaway (Bill Pullman) and Elizabeth Anderson (Julia Ormond) arrive at a police station outside Santa Fe to interview three witnesses to a series of horrific murders, nothing is as straightforward as it would first appear. A traumatized young girl (Ryan Simpkins), a junkie looking to get high (Pell James), and a strung out cop (Kent Harper) all have very different stories to tell as well as various secrets to hide, but as the agents set up their recording gear and video cameras, and the interviews begin, it quickly becomes apparent that something is not quite right. It is impossible to say to much more without giving some if not all of the game away, but this is a superior thriller and weird drama that is both very involving and very unnerving at the same time. Many of the characters have that trademark David Lynch quirkiness, in particular Bill Pullman as Sam Hallaway turning in a very good performance as a genuinely "odd" individual, and French Stewart (of Third Rock From The Sun fame) as a police officer and victim of the killers who are stalking these roads who is only seen in a series of flashbacks but still gives a very arresting (no pun intended) performance. But the real star of this film is the story, and the real fun is to be had in the telling of the tale. As the story unfolds in a series of flashbacks from three different perspectives, small details come into much shaper focus, and a surprising truth emerges. Co-written by Jennifer Lynch and Kent Harper (the same Kent Harper who plays one of the witnesses mentioned above) this is an involving and surprising tale that is very well told, with enough held back to make each little bit of new information that is painstakingly teased from the three witnesses of genuine interest and importance. The sense of wide open spaces where nothing much really happens is brilliantly conveyed through some great cinematography and a tidy script that can be surprisingly funny when it wants to be. Whilst not perfect, with some plot holes left gaping open by the end of the film and most of the characters slightly exaggerated (although this does actually work within the context of the movie), this is still a surprisingly involving movie.

In case you don’t know, the writer/director of ‘Surveillance’ is Jennifer (daughter of renowned master of the surreal David) Lynch. So, if you’ve seen anything from Blue Velvet to Mullholland Drive (or any other of ‘Daddy’ Lynch’s work, you’ll probably know what to expect from his offspring.Like her father, she delves deep into places most of us would rather not go. Here, two FBI agents arrive in a small town, hot on the trail of a couple of wanted serial killers. Unfortunately, they’re too late to stop a spree of killings, but do their best to piece together the carnage from the handful of survivors who have made it out alive.The characters are a wide and varied bunch, but, what unites them is that they’re all pretty unlikable. Yes, there is a little girl who brings a touch of innocence to the film and – rightly so – she even won an award for her performance. But the rest of them are pretty dark – even the ones who you’re supposed to root for! Much of the tale is told through the eyes of the survivors, making the film mainly a series of flashbacks which are open to interpretation.You get a fair amount of (what I’d call) ‘Pulp Fiction-esque’ dialogue which shows us more about the characters, rather than speeds the plot along. This can either work well, or drag the story along. I’m glad to say that it does the job here. Again, like her father, the dialogue is pretty cringe worthy to listen to, largely due to its content and how awkward and uncomfortable it makes the (few innocent) characters feel.However, unlike David Lynch’s films, this one is a little more straight forward. His tend to be very open to interpretation, whereas Surveillance has a definitely ‘beginning, middle and end.’ Yes, it can be a little jumbled sometimes, but you shouldn’t have any trouble keeping up, especially if you’re in the mood for something very dark and twisted.

Whilst this is quite a well-made film, full of corrupt characters and a sleazy atmosphere, it's plot becomes clear within the first 5 minutes.Sure, the two adult survivors of the hijack/ambush/crash/disaster are lying about what happened, but they have good reason to. Sure, the police department is full of wierdos with no sense of right and wrong. But, you can tell that everyone is lying very quickly as the film justaposes reality with testimony, and this should lead to some obvious conclusions quite quickly.Other reviewers say there is a great twist at the end of the film. The 'twist' isn't at the end, and it's not a 'twist' it's more of a reveal, a confirmation of what you should already know if you've been paying attention.The redeeming feature of this film is the direction, which slowly builds the atmosphere, taking it's time to create a semi-believable situation. This isn't a fast-paced thriller, and the gore could have been cut out completely and the film would be just as good, but the slow pace, less than perfect characters and the claustrophobia of the police station are worth the price of admission.