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Bluesky

If you’ve ever spoken with a high level security expert – which one would think most US senators have – then you’ll know that the advice on how to deal with threats is very simple. Don’t cooperate. If somebody has power over you and insists that you do something, the only reason for them to do that is to increase their power over you. One would think that a US senator would know that, but this thriller by TV actor Mark Kassen hinges on the premise that its central character will make the wrong decision at almost every opportunity.

That character is Payton Burnham (played by Kassen himself), who is alone in his spacious apartment one morning, having just said goodbye to his wife and kids, when he opens his newspaper to find the words ‘answer your phone’ scrawled across one page. Just then, his phone starts ringing. It’s an unknown number. Does he lock himself in the safest room available and call for help, knowing that he might have an intruder to deal with? No. He answers that call and submits to the blackmail that follows.

Though not particularly original or inspired, this is a serviceable thriller. It’s unfortunate that it has come out at a time when its central tenets are difficult to take seriously. Payton stands accused of involvement in a series of scandals which, in the current climate, are trivial. The worst, when it comes, ought to be of genuine concern, but similar things have already been demonstrated to make little impression on the voters who matter. Furthermore, devices used to shape the plot have been rendered obsolete by changing technology. Who now would genuinely believe that audio of a loved one’s voice must come for that – or any – real person? It doesn’t help that some of what the film expects us to take seriously is presented like basic mentalism, such as the caller ‘proving’ he can see Payton by stating that he’s wearing a blue shirt and grey trousers.

Payton’s apartment is nicely shot, with some effort at generating suspense, yet there are whole rooms we don’t see and consequently it never generates the sense of claustrophobia or hidden threat usually present in restricted location films. The strongest asset here is the ambiguity attached to Payton himself, who is never quite likeable enough for one to be confident that he didn’t do the thing he’s accused of. This has the potential to give the film some moral depth, as we balance the weight of the scandals against the good he’s trying to achieve, but this is squandered by an overly simplistic ending and a musical coda which tips the scales heavily in one direction.

Good enough for streaming on a quiet Friday night, this is unlikely to cut it in the cinema, and unlikely to be remembered for long even if it does.

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