Reviewed by Rama Gaind.
Director: Stephan Rick, Defiant Screen Entertainment.
Having an accident, inadvertently, would be a nightmare, but when you cover it up the consequences can be alarming.
Such is the scenario for this story of two men who are bound together by a dark secret. The psychological thriller stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers (Vikings, The Tudors, Bend It Like Beckham), Luke Kleintank (The Man In The High Castle, Crown Vic), Eloise Smyth (Harlots, The Frankenstein Chronicles) and Bruce Davison (Willard, X-Men).
Moving house is rough, but moving to a new country is even rougher. That’s the situation for David (Kleintank) at the start of The Good Neighbor. He’s a former New York Times journalist who has moved to Latvia for a fresh start after some personal issues.
A former colleague Grant (Davison) can get him a job and he makes friends with Robert (Rhys Meyers), who is a strange neighbour. When the two of them go out to a local club he hits it off with Janine (Ieva Florence, Swindlers, Blizzard of Souls) and even gets her number before she leaves. Unfortunately, leaving the club after a few too many, David hits and kills a cyclist – and it’s Janine.
David is shocked and Robert convinces him to flee the scene. The budding friendship of the neighbours takes a tragic turn after the accident. Nevertheless, he can’t escape his guilt or the crime itself. While he’s plagued by feelings of guilt, Robert shows no remorse and becomes domineering and overprotective.
When David gets involved with Janine’s sister Vanessa (Eloise Smyth) things get even more complicated. It’s a twisted psychological thriller about the “unspeakable things” some people will do and the lengths they will go to protect their secrets.
Stephan Rick, director of The Super, brings genuinely disturbing thrills to his new feature. The film is a remake of the 2011 German film Unter Nachbarn which was also directed by Rick. The screenplay is written by Rick, Ross Partridge and Silja Clemens.
The Good Neighbour is a remake of which film? If the answer is correct, you could be one of three winners to get a DVD of this film. Entries should be sent to [email protected] by Monday, 22 August 2022. Names of the winners will be announced in Frank Cassidy’s PS-sssst…! column on 23 August 2022.
- The Good Neighbour has been launched on DVD and Digital
