Kate is dealing with a personal tragedy while owning and training horses in Echo Valley, an isolated and picturesque place, when her daughter, Claire, arrives at her doorstep, frightened, trembling and covered in someone else’s blood.
Chuck says:
Kate Garretson is hanging by a thread. Grieving the loss of her wife, it’s an effort for her to get out of bed each morning, the crack in the ceiling over her bed a reminder of all she needs to do but hasn’t the will to do it. Her horse farm is too much for her to handle alone and not having the will to continue teaching riding lessons, she’s in danger of losing her home. The fact that she’s going to have to go hat-in-hand to her ex-husband to ask for money to fix the barn roof is an unpleasant necessity.
As a result of all this, she’s hardly prepared when her daughter Claire shows up on her door, hysterical and strung out, desperate for help. This scenario has played out many times before and Kate does what she always does, dropping everything to cater to Claire’s needs, something the girl counts on. Yet her manipulation on this occasion will come back to haunt them both, her self-centered actions ultimately putting them in a life-threatening situation.
The success of Michael Pearce’s “Echo Valley” relies heavily on strong performances. There are some third-act plot points that offer themselves up for scrutiny and for some viewers, their suspension of disbelief will be tested when they witness all the heroine does in an effort to save herself and her daughter. Yet, the conviction brought to the roles of Kate and Claire by Julianne Moore and Sydney Sweeney, respectively, allowed me to look past some of the convenient turns Brad Ingelsby’s script takes. Each actress gives wholly committed, exhausting performances that are not only compelling, but recognizable.
Moore’s mama bear approach in bringing Kate to life elicits emotions ranging from sympathy to exasperation. While any parent will relate to her protective instincts, her willingness to cater to Claire though it compromises her financially and morally will prompt you to want to give her a good shaking.
Sweeney proves her equal when they share the screen, looking ragged and unkempt, her face puffy and drawn, jittery in anticipation of her next hit. The actress turns on a dime, going from sweet and sympathetic to being a rage-filled narcissist without missing a beat. And though her role is a supporting one, her presence is felt throughout.
Equally memorable is Domhnall Gleeson as Jackie, the drug dealer Claire is indebted to, having inadvertently thrown away some merchandise he wants to be paid for. Kate makes good on the debt, thinking they’ll then be rid of him. However, a desperate act on her part allows him to lord over her in a way that will ultimately cost her everything. That you want to bash Jackie’s head in with a baseball bat is a tribute to Gleeson’s conviction towards the role.
Shot as if there are perpetually overcast autumn skies, Pearce rarely lets the pace flag, the bucolic, country setting ultimately consumed by the sort of noirish overtones more akin to the city. Ingelsby’s script slowly tightens the noose around Kate, the viewer sharing in her growing sense of dread, realizing only too late just how dire her situation is, her sense of desperation, palpable.
To be sure, the climax requires a bit of a leap to accept but when all is said and done, what occurs is not out of the realm of the possible. And in the end, it should be remembered the film is ostensibly an examination of the pitfalls of enabling abhorrent behavior. “Echo” takes an unflinching look at the eternal parental dilemma of knowing when to step in to help your children and having the courage to walk away when necessary.
3 Stars
