When Dee was a young girl, she came home one day and found her mother lying in bed, dead by suicide.
Now, almost 40 years later, Dee (Natasha Henstridge), is on her way to an exclusive weekend at a very unusual secluded retreat: The House of Abraham. Having passed the stringent security, she is met at the door by Beatrice (Lin Shaye – “Scared to Death”), who welcomes her in and shows her to her room. Beatrice also asks Dee to surrender her car and her phone. The House of Abraham, we learn, is a very special place: here people come to commit suicide.
The first time she meets Abraham is at dinner that night, along with five others who are there to end their lives as well. Abraham (Lukas Hassel – “The Monster”) is imposing, with a head like the Westernized Jesus, a strong voice, commanding presence and athletic body. He smoothly explains the process to his guests who seem weak by comparison.
One of the guests, Victor (Gary Clarke – “Why Me?”), is upset by the way Abraham is handling what to Victor is a very serious and personal issue, and decides to leave. However, later Dee observes Beatrice going through Victor’s suitcase – has he really left? Without his property?
That night, Dee removes a piece of jewelry which is, in fact, a camera that has recorded events from the evening. She is clearly up to something. She hides the camera, only to discover the next morning that it has been discovered and her recording erased. Even worse, there is a new video file of someone approaching her in her sleep. Then, worst of all, one of the remaining guests, Pierre (Sean Freeland – “Devil’s Peak”), is found in his tub, his throat slashed. The first suicide has happened.
Director Lisa Belcher (“Javalina Run”) does an excellent job in her feature film debut. All the characters are well portrayed and the film moves along at a steady pace while the mystery and the tension build toward the surprise climax. The screenplay, written by Lukas Hassel, is intelligent and, while it gives him the meatiest part, it does an excellent job of keeping our interest as the bizarre premise becomes something ever darker.
This is a well-constructed film with excellent cinematography, a supportive musical score, and a catchy opening and closing tune: “Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep” (Lally Stott – 1970).
Definitely worth a look.
Runtime: One hour, 31 minutes
Availability: Opens in selected theaters on June 13
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