The dark and twisted Take Me To The River is an intriguing and enjoyable little drama – though very slight, and never entirely convincing in terms of its characters’ motivations, behaviours or actions.

The sense of place and familial bonding/tension is strongly established through the crisp cinematography and subtle performances, with the creeping sense of mystery and dread making for a chilling atmosphere at odds with the idyllic surroundings.

It is marred, however, by some unfeasible character decisions that feel slightly too contrived to keep the narrative on course, when a simple conversation could have solved many of their misunderstandings.

An assured debut from Sobel shows great potential and gives a promising sign of things to come – though Take Me To The River is too thin to really impress.

RATING: 3/5

INFORMATION

CAST: Logan Miller, Robin Weigert, Josh Hamilton, Ursula Parker 

DIRECTOR: Matt Sobel

WRITER: Matt Sobel

SYNOPSIS: An LA teenager’s plan to come out to his country-dwelling family at a get-together goes awry when he is falsely accused of abusing his young cousin.

TRAILER COMING SOON

Take Me to the River was screened as part of the Dare Gala at the 2015 London Film Festival.