Review of Faults (2014) by Jessica T — 26 Jun 2015

Clever and subtly menacing, "Faults" stays unexpected to the very end. The film follows Ansel Roth (Leland Orser), a self-professed expert on mind control, who is hired by an older couple to rescue their daughter Claire (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) from an ominous cult named Faults.

Writer-director Riley Stearns creates a surreal and absurdist tone, which suits the material and lends itself to dark humour. He builds the conflict and tension around two intriguing opponents: a deprogrammer and a cultist. One tries to undermine, while the other resists, but both are sensitive to what makes people vulnerable to influence, allowing them to relate to each other intimately.

Stearns' formidable lead actors play with this duality brilliantly. Orser is incredibly convincing as a man living a fraudulent life - he's assured and confident when working with Claire, but becomes increasingly anxious when confronting personal affairs. Winstead is known for her understated yet perfectly measured performances, and her turn in "Faults" is no exception. She plays Claire with a quiet defiance, while maintaining an inscrutability that allures and unsettles. It's the well-matched power play between Orser and Winstead that makes "Faults" a rewarding experience.