Review of Viper Club (2018) by Brent_Marchant — 07 Nov 2018

A gut-wrenching, heart-tugging drama ripped from the pages of contemporary headlines that tells a story that needs to be told, an objective that parallels the very mission of the characters on screen and that candidly reveals the pitfalls involved in accomplishing said goal.

Susan Sarandon turns in one of the best performances of her career in this film about a mother desperately seeking the release of her kidnapped journalist son covering the conflict in Syria and the bureaucratic red tape she must contend with in trying to do so.

But, even more than that, the film explores her impassioned quest to discover why her son pursued this life in the first place, one whose answers, ironically enough, are hiding in plain sight, clues to which become apparent when she looks to herself.

While the film is a bit slow in spots and deviates from the main narrative perhaps more than it should, this thoughtfully written release nevertheless offers more than just the basics of what one might expect from it.

Unfortunately, this offering is likely to end up on the trash heap of overlooked gems, thanks in large part to too many critics taking too narrow a view of what the film has to say. Ignore the naysayers and see it.