On DVD and BLU RAY - "A Single Shot" - Have you ever noticed that it's always a painfully frustrating dumb-shit that stumbles upon a loose stash of cash in movies? I guess if film scripts and novels were to throw in a clever, crafty "discoverer" into the mix it would make for a mighty short entertainment experience. Sam Rockwell (Moon), in an admittedly stellar performance, stars as a grizzled poacher who accidentally shoots a young woman while out hunting (because in Hollywood there are no virtuous hunters) only to discover a large sum of money nearby. Failing to handle the matter in an honest, intelligent way, our protagonist incurs the wrath of a small group of backwoods criminals (led by a greasy Jason Isaacs) out to reclaim their missing loot. It wants to be some kind of brooding backwoods film noir, but can't keep from tripping itself up with two clubbed feet.
This film does feature some hauntingly atmospheric cinematography and is often gorgeous to look at- potential viewers can also expect a wealth of memorably shady characters and subsequently strong performances. Rockwell consistently brings the goods while Jeffrey Wright (Source Code) is fantastic as a guilt-stricken drunkard. Willaim H. Macy's (Fargo) crooked lawyer is as strangely out of place as his god-awful toupee. I was amazed at how a corpse magically defies nature in failing to decompose (or display rigor) after days of being stored out in the elements, while a series of brash, idiotic moves by the main character may find some rooting against him...
There is an effectively tense climactic scene which will have most gripping their arm-rests, though a ridiculously pretentious, "poetic" last sequence left me feeling cold and outright disappointed. It's one of those films with quite a few elements working for it but with an equal amount working against it.
Watch Sam Raimi's A Simple Plan or Scott Frank's The Lookout instead...
5.5 out of 10
Director: David M. Rosenthal
Starring: Sam Rockwell, William H. Macy, Jason Isaacs, Ted Levine, Kelly Reilly, Joe Anderson and Jeffrey Wright.
Running Time: 116 minutes
MPAA Rating: Rated R for some strong violence, sexual content, nudity, language and brief drug use
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