‘Exit 0’ Review
Stars: Gabe Fazio, Augie Duke, Federico Castelluccio, Peter Greene, Kenneth McGregor, Daniel O’Shea, Boomer Tibbs, Ashley Jordyn, Tara Rose Schreiber, Lindsey Axelsson, Kevin Ebner, Cash Kortum | Written and Directed by E.B. Hughes
Written and Directed by E.B. Hughes (Turnabout), Exit 0 is dark psychological thriller that follows a young couple who attempt to salvage their relationship with a trip to the seaside, away from the hustle, bustle and noise of the city. Things don’t go as planned, however (when do they?), as the man, Billy, discovers a VHS tape in the hotel room dresser drawer containing an apparent murder. Then the tape goes missing and people struggle to believe what Billy is telling them. Oh dear.
The film has an immediate tension that I thought was taken hold of and built up well as things progressed. It’s not merely a murder-mystery story, but delves into psycho-thriller with the questioning of Billy’s mindset. It deals as much with the psychological stability of the main character as it does anything else, and in the end falls into a character study, with the revelations and turns in the story coming from dialogue instead of things you may expect from a dark thriller.
Exit 0 is not a film I would say is entirely original in concept and there was little I would say stood out to me as being unique, but the performances, especially that from Gabe Fazio (The Place Beyond the Pines) as Billy. He brings an unhinged edge to his character that has you constantly wondering and questioning. With a lesser actor in the role this film may be one that would fall way below average, but Fazio brings it up a lot, giving some heart and tormented soul to things. Augie Duke, who plays Billy’s partner, Lisa, is also good here though I did feel like there was a lack of chemistry between the two. It wasn’t exactly poor, but it is something I noticed quite quickly.
This is a slow-moving and thoughtful film with some intriguing ideas going on. It’s lead performance is a good one, and I enjoyed following things for the 95 or so minutes it lasted. Exit 0 is engaging and makes up for what it lacks with a cast who do a good job in their roles. It’s not the most beautiful looking movie on the planet, and looks a touch cheap, but I had fun with it and found the characters, location and story itself to make up for its shortcomings.
