By Melissa Antoinette Garza
TRIANGLE begins with Jess (Melissa George) clutching her special needs child closely telling him that he just had a bad dream. Her emotion conveys that something else is going on entirely, and just like that TRIANGLE begins the ride.
Jess is a single mother who takes the day to go on a yacht trip with her new potential beau Greg (Michael Dorman) and his friends. Downey (Henry Nixon), Sally (Rachael Carpani), Heather (Emma Lung) and Victor (Liam Hemsworth).
Downey and Sally brought along Heather with the hopes of setting her up with Greg, but he is already smitten with Jess. Sally thinks Jess is after Greg’s money, but Heather is pretty cool. She begins checking out Vic and lets Jess and Greg do their own thing.
When Jess first arrived to the boat, she was disheveled and despondent. She apologizes to Greg for an unknown reason. When he questions her behavior, she tells him that she’s just tired. She tries to convince herself of the same when she wakes from a bad dream.
An electrical storm causes Greg to call for instructions. During the conversation, a distressed caller can be heard begging for help. Suddenly, the weather gets far worse. The group grabs life jackets as the boat tips over. The survivors sit atop the bottom of the ship floating until they come across a titanic style ocean liner. They jump aboard the craft and though the others celebrate being alive, Jess becomes uneasy. The cruise appears deserted as the group looks for others.
Jess is scared for a different reason, though. Somehow – someway – she recognizes the corridors and hallways. She has scattered memories of the existence they are now just living. In a constant state of déjà vu, she becomes unraveled. When her keys are somehow found on the boat, more questions arise as to how they got there and what exactly is going on.
Before those questions are answered, a masked sniper begins shooting at the group. Everyone is suspect of Jess who tries to prove her innocence.
The conclusion is both surprising and fitting. It builds on everything the previous 90 minutes put forth and added an additional element that was unexpected.
I love movies like this. TIMECRIMES (2007), GHOSTHOUSE (1988) and MOON (2009) are all other great examples of films that share the same tone and atmosphere.
The cast is sensational. Michael Dorman kills it as a genuinely kind gent. He’s a protagonist to root for from the moment he sets foot on camera. He’s also very easy on the eyes!
It was interesting to see Liam Hemsworth in this. I saw this when it first came out and before I knew who the Hemsworth brothers were. In all honesty, he does add depth to a pretty innocuous character. With little screen time and less dialogue, he still gives the impression that Vic has good intentions despite his rough upbringing.
Finally, Melissa George is sensational! She is one of my favorite modern actresses and is extremely underutilized! Here, she is able to let her feminine strength run wild. She’s a badass and I love her. George dives in full-force showing Jess as the single-mom on her last rope that she is. Even when we don’t’ know the magnitude of the situation, George expertly emotes the pain and hopeless nature of Jess.
I can’t recommend this one enough. It’s entertaining, compelling and it has a marvelous cast and crew. It’s a mind-bending, intelligent, TWILIGHT ZONE style adventure. Enjoy it as it is currently on Amazon Prime.
Scared Stiff Rating: 7.5/10
