Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Got this on Google Play here in NYC. I see the lead actor wrote this, he is to be commended, this is a very good script that will satisfy those who like the genre (noir/crime/dark drama). This is one of those "downward spiral" movies where a guy starts to screw his life up more and more as he goes along. So if you liked say A Simple Plan, you'll probably like this. The third act is strong also, which is a rarity these days. Too bad he couldn't find a producer and director that would do more with this solid storyline - the sound was pretty bad - it sounded like they didn't even use a boom, and the cinematography - well there wasn't any. Every scene was shot using whatever light was there. Maybe this was intentional, to give it that "cinema verite" look but it did not add to the film. Many takes were longer than they needed to be and the pacing was the same all the way through - come on, this is a thriller, it should accelerate as it gets going not stay at the same mph the whole way. Also a little score would have gone a long way, especially in the third act to amp up the suspense. The acting is just decent, with the standout probably being Martin Askew. Would have liked to have seen a bit more flavor from the characters. Gangsters are supposed to be fun to watch in my book, as well as being intimidating. The protagonist was not that remarkable, the kid was whiny and the wife wasn't exactly a ray of sunshine. But yet it still works because the script sets up the situation properly and the suspense and plot turns are more than enough to hold your interest.Anyway, if this is your type of film, it's worth seeing for sure.