Pressure

Pressure is something of a paradox. It plays like an above-average TV movie, but at times does better than standard hollywood fare in avoiding plot cliches and explosion-driven narratives.

Kerr Smith, probably familiar from Dawson's Creek, is pretty likeable as the young man caught up in a series of freak mishaps which leave him hunted by the local police for a crime he didn't commit. There are some dodgy moments (The old camera spinning round the head as he tries to stay sane moment leaps to mind) but overall it's undemanding and he does fine. The supporting cast does fine, Lochlyn Munro is best as his unbelievably loyal friend (You're the subject of a statewide manhunt and waving a gun around while covered in blood? Let's go!) and the sheriff is suitably psychotic. That's the main character problem with the film - some of the characters are just so damn nasty it makes them somewhat unbelievable.

The narrative is the film's strong point, although it tails off a bit in the second half. The way that things fall apart in the first place is suitably plausible and it's a shame that the same inventiveness couldn't continue through the whole script. Things stay pretty tense though, and really the only complaint is that it ends a bit easily and perhaps should have been drawn out a bit longer - hardly the worst criticism of a film.

So overall - not a bad way to kill 90 minutes on a sunday afternoon.