The married couple at the heart of the new indie drama “Dark Woods” just want to be left alone.
The introduction of a young, attractive stranger into their lives shatters their isolation, and then some, in this alternately original and unsettling feature.
The film plays out like a spare thriller, one without cheap scares or an obtrusive score.
Instead, it’s a meditation on marriage and the strengths that bind couples together in the very worst of times.
Henry and Susan Branch (John Muscarnero, Tracy Coogan) have retreated to the woods, away from family and friends for a much needed respite.
Or so we think.
Turns out Susan is very sick and recovering from the latest in a series of treatments. The film doesn’t make her condition crystal clear. All we know is that Henry is doing all he can to make her comfortable.
The strain on him is palpable.
Susan’s condition worsens just as Henry comes to the aid of a young woman (Mary Kate Wiles) being attacked near their cabin.
Henry takes the stranger in at the suggestion of the local sheriff (James Russo), but her introduction into their somber home changes the dynamic.
Just who is this woman, and why does she make Henry so uncomfortable?
The film’s spare, effective premise might have yielded a by-the-numbers thriller in the hands of a Hollywood hack. Instead, director Michael Escobedo strives to tell a different kind of story, one where the machinations of the genre take a back seat to explorations of the characters’ fears and longing.
The results impress more often than not, but it’s a film that offers few tangible rewards.
Muscarnero, who wrote the screenplay, delivers an understated performance that adds to the dignity Henry displays on his wife’s behalf. But the approach also keeps the audience somewhat removed from him and his situation.
“Dark Woods” works best as an unconventional tribute to marriage, a look at a husband who gives everything he can to his sick wife leaving him hopelessly exposed.
Note: ‘Dark Woods’ is currently seeking a distributor.
(Photo: James Russo and John Muscarnero star in “Dark Woods,” a haunting new indie thriller.)
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