My “fall back” Sunday started out easy. The kids were with their grandfather, hubby was overdosing on football Sunday and I had some uninterrupted “me” time. I spent part of the day writing and then decided to hit the Redbox and find something to watch. I chose to watch the movie “N-Secure”. I chose unwisely.
The preview stated that the film was a no holds-barred thrilling drama mixed with murder, mayhem and manipulation among affluent professionals. This film sheds light on a man’s downfall from the pinnacles of success into the depths of his damaged character. His insecurities lead him into a series of troubled romantic relationships and eventually a web of events that include betrayal and murder. I figured I would give it a look since the main character appeared to have some of the controlling aspects that have been revealed in one of the main characters in my current work in progress. I wanted to see how the screenwriter developed the character. I discovered that character development wasn’t a strength for this film.
I went into it with an open mind. I really did. Sure, I wasn’t expecting Oscar worthy performances but I did expect decent acting and dialogue. The movie started out pleasant enough. Anytime a movie starts with a Jill Scott song playing I am in a good place. Jill makes me happy. But the movie itself, not so much.
Here is a quick rundown of the action: David is engaged to Robin. David is rigid, controlling and uncompromising. His life is planned down to the minute and he holds everyone to his high standard. He appears to be an unbearable jerk and you wonder why Robin stays with him. Oh, yeah, he’s rich. The day before their wedding, Robin confesses to her best friend that she doesn’t even love David. (Who can blame her?) Then Robin is caught attempting to cheat with her best friend’s finance. David throws her out. He then kills the man she “cheated” with by cutting his brakes but the cops rule it a suicide without any further investigating. David then proceeds to go into another relationship with Tina where his “insecurities” make him take the control thing up a notch. I’m talking trackers on cars, using a blue light on the sheets, instructions on answering his calls and his ten commandments. Tina can’t even burn herself on the neck with a curling iron without being accused of having a hickie. It would be disturbing if it wasn’t so badly acted as to be unbelievable. There were several times I laughed out loud at the terrible dialogue and the predictable action. The best thing about the movie was the beautiful scenes of Memphis where the story took place.
N-Secure felt like it could have been a decent drama about domestic violence and showed the circumstances and consequences of those relationships. The movies “Enough” and “Sleeping with the Enemy” are an example. But N-Secure failed on so many levels that it can’t be taken seriously. One good thing came out of my viewing. It did give me a blog post. And I got to listen to some Jill Scott.