Directed by:
David M. RosenthalScreenplay:
Matthew F. JonesCinematography:
Eduard GrauComposer:
Atli ÖrvarssonCast:
Sam Rockwell, Jeffrey Wright, Kelly Reilly, Jason Isaacs, Joe Anderson, Ophelia Lovibond, Ted Levine, William H. Macy, W. Earl Brown, Amy Sloan, A.C. Peterson (more)VOD (4)
Plots(1)
In the pale blue light of dawn, John Moon leaves his trailer along with his dog and a shotgun. As he makes his way into the wooded mountains, he passes a sign prohibiting hunting and fishing. He takes aims at a deer in a thicket and misses once before raising his gun again.
Shortly afterwards, a young woman lies dying in the mud, and Moon finds a letter and a large sum of money. From this point on, the hunter has become the hunted.
David M. Rosenthal's A Single Shot tells the story of how the panicky cover-up of a hunting accident descends into a seemingly never-ending nightmare. John Moon, played with dedication by Sam Rockwell, finds himself cornered like a wounded animal by rednecks, criminals and dodgy lawyers as he desperately tries to undo the past, win back the wife and child who left him and regain a foothold on his father's lost farm.
The camera's long focal depth narrows out the spaces to effectively trap the actors within them, just as the bleak winter colours intensify the impression of being in the grip of a nightmare so all-consuming that your legs seem to buckle beneath you.
(Berlinale)
Reviews (2)
It could have been great, because these rainy, raw small-town thrillers (like Out of the Furnace) where a bunch of villagers, a box of money and a dead body get mixed up have great atmosphere and are usually very fun to watch. Here everything works quite fine except for the plodding pace, which some will enjoy and others will get bored with now and then. It's missing its biggest acting aces, but Rockwell saves the day with dignity.
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An overly long film that tries to convey a message but ultimately fails because it hides behind a visually unappealing and cold form. Lately, I feel like there are too many movies like that. It has an incredibly slow pace, minimal plot, strange characters, and zero storytelling ability, yet critics and cinephiles have reason to celebrate. In this case, fortunately, it’s not really possible. And that's a good thing.
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