SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

Janis One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

SnoopyStyle Beth Welland (Kathleen Robertson) and Diana Burke (Andrea Roth) get into a car crash on a rainy night. The movie flashes back to see the two women and their hectic day. Beth is a flustered single mom to her disabled son. She struggles as problems pile on. Diana is a high power career woman with an unemployed husband and tight money problems. Both run each other on the road until Beth has enough.There is nothing terribly wrong but I never got invested in these characters. The back and forth between the two women does very little to build drama because I'm simply waiting for the final 15 minutes. This could have been a female version of "Falling Down" if it follows only Beth. In the end, the movie falters in the middle until some interesting reveals for the closing.

frank479 They don't tell you this in the plot outline but early into this movie you realize that Murphy, of the ill-famed 'Murphy's Laws,' apparently has written himself into this script :^). As you're watching this movie, it will slowly reel you in. By the time you're 3/4 into it, you'll find yourself amazed, thinking just how good it is. But, by then, you're just scratching the surface of where this movie is going to take you. And by the end, you'll be glad that you decided to invest the time to watch it. This movie leaves you feeling. And, most importantly, you'll learn something about life and yourself from the experience because, during the movie, you'll be constantly comparing your life to the ones you're witnessing on the screen. And I bet, you'll see a bit of yourself there sometimes. This movie makes you profoundly think about a lot of things. Kudos to the director.

RockBiter On the surface this is a low-budget made-for-TV movie but I found myself sinking into it more and more and more until my entire body was tensing and my hands clenching. When a story comes along which compels you to THINK after it is finished, it is a gem. This was by no means an air-tight written story but the CHARACTERS were real and their lives were real. Based on a '24' real-time type script, the movie follows one day in the lives of two completely unrelated women. Their only connection is a horrific accident involving the two of them resulting from road rage at the end of it. The movie begins at the end, in effect, and gives us the details of that day gradually. The camera occasionally shows us the time during the flashbacks, on an office wall or a car dashboard. It is filmed in a real-life, over-the-shoulder, CNN type mode which makes you feel like you are walking into the conference room with Andrea Roth's Diana Burke or sitting at a table in a restaurant with Kathleen Roberston's Beth Welland. And all the while, the anger and despair of these women slowly builds to that exploding point.The movie is very much an indictment of our dog-eat-dog society as well. Even though these women live in the bustle of the city they are ALONE and it is a shock to you to realize that the human being next to you on the highway or passing you in the hallway could be living a life like these two women. The movie ends with one of them surviving and the other passing away and you, having entered into their lives, are left to process what decisions and actions and circumstances brought them to that fateful moment. That's all. And you will, if you see the movie.There are two very powerful scenes in this movie which I want to mention. Kathleen Robertson's performance here I will not soon forget. There is a scene in the restaurant just before the cake arrives during her son's birthday party - and while the son has been invited to the kitchen by the chef - where Beth has been informed by her ex that his lawyer feels they have a strong case for full custody of their son. She has just lost her job and has nothing while he and his new girlfriend have just bought a nice house in the burbs. He mentions it casually like it was of little consequence but when the son returns the camera is only on Kathleen's face. For a full minute all of the noise in the place filters out and you are left with seeing the poison come into her eyes in complete silence. I have not seen or felt a more authentic, human scene in a film. The other was at the end - and this is the real spoiler - as the doctors inform those at the hospital of Beth's death. Once again the camera is only on one person - her son - and when the moment comes his entire body wilts and his eyes become vacant. You realize that he is the only one who will miss her. I was left gasping as I saw it.For anyone who is looking for a real human story here is one for you.

kikioreekee-1 THIS CONTAINS SPOILERS-I was in complete shock at how well done and suspenseful this film is. Both actresses deliver the goods- Andrea Toth (of Rescue Me) and Kathleen Robertson both are perfectly cast as the Career Woman and the Single Mother who meet in a very disturbing way. Within the 2 hours of the film, we live a 24 hour period in both of their lives concurrently. Andrea is an Ad Exec with huge pressure to perform in her career as well as home- her husband is unemployed and she has 2 teenage children to support, and another on the way. As viewers, we can plainly see that she is completely preoccupied 100% of the time. She is up for a promotion and today is the day she must give a presentation that will make or break her promotion to VP.Kathleen is a single mom living in a small apartment right off the freeway, raising her child, who is in a wheelchair. Her car is on the fritz, and she has no money to spare. She works as a lawyers assistant and everything in her life seems to go wrong. When we meet her today, she is late to work and isn't there to receive a affidavit her boss needs for court that day. He demands she go get the document- and she ends up having to run for blocks and blocks to catch up with the bicycle messenger. She finally gets the document only to return to work to be fired. At her wits end, she pawns her necklace to buy her child a birthday present. When she goes to meet her ex and her child for birthday dinner, her ex threatens to take her son away. As the viewer, you can literally feel the pressure in your chest, watching this woman's world crumble.Andrea, meanwhile, is called back to her sons school during her hectic day because he has taken one of his father's antique guns to school. She cant get her husband on the phone, so she takes her son home. She then sees her husband pull up with his golf clubs in the back of the car. Again, as a viewer- you can identify with the frustration. She returns to a job site where an ad is being shot, and her car is towed. She then fails to get to the important client meeting and loses the promotion. When she finds out all the flights out of the airport are delayed, she makes the unwise decision to get to the client at the airport.Throughout the entire film, the two main characters are weaving in and out of each others lives- all while desperately trying to be Super People Who Get Things Done Without Help. First Andrea cuts Kathleen off on the freeway in the morning, causing the lateness that makes her miss the document delivery. Then the commercial being shot makes Kathleen unable to return to work with the document on time. Andrea's problems with her son at school cause her to be absentminded enough to park in a tow away zone- therefore losing the client. Kathleens car stalls once again at the end, this time with Andrea behind her trying to get to the airport. Kathleen recognizes Andrea as the woman who caused the delay in the morning, and in a Falling Down moment, confronts Andrea who is still in her car. She then proceeds to bash the SUV with the telescope she had purchased with the money from pawn. Andrea floors it in fear- and Kathleen follows in hot pursuit. They have a nightmarish accident, which is shown throughout the story in pieces, without giving anything away.At the end, we discover that after the accident, Kathleen attempts to help Andrea out of her SUV in the pouring rain. At that time, Andrea pulls the antique gun and shoots Kathleen in the chest. They are both taken to the hospital and Andrea lives, while Kathleen does not.Claiming self defense, Andrea will go to trial for the shooting- but she did not lose the baby, although she lost part of one of her legs. She then vows to spend more time on things that matter. It was devastating to see the impact of road rage and frustration from the day to day pressures we all suffer. So many things loom large when we cant step away from them and see them clearly. This story is a perfect example of that, and the actresses are both superb.