Review of Compliance (2012) by Manny C — 08 Jan 2013

One word to describe Compliance: torturous. Not because it's a terrible film, far from it, but because Craig Zobel's provocative film presents a scenario that is harrowing to sit through, but must be seen.

The scene is a fast food joint. Sandra (Ann Dowd, amazing) is the manager who gets a call from a cop (Pat Healy) telling her he needs her assistance with an investigation. Seems one of her employees, Becky (Dreama Walker of tv's Dont Trust The B--- in Apartment 23, and she is superb), may have stolen some money from a customer.

Sandra, played superbly by Dowd in a performance Oscar would be stupid to ignore, becomes justifiably unnerved when the cop asks her to go from questioning her employee to instigating a strip search. Then he asks for more.

Is the man on the phone even a police officer and is Sandra right to comply with his orders? Zobel presents these questions with discomforting intensity. No need to say more other than that this fact-based (you heard me) film will haunt your dreams with questions that are far scarier than anything raised in a Saw movie.

Compliance stays with you and that is its goal. See it.