A review of ‘Faults’ by Deen Hussein.

2014 was a huge year for cinema. Many great films that will be remembered for decades, possibly even forever were released and showcased in the space of 1 year. Because of this (and a combination of the fact that it was Riley Stearns’ second production), ‘Faults’ was drowned out by the booming release of films within the year and sadly went under the radar.

I’m here to shed some light on the film and give it the review it deserves.

Firstly, let me start with the storyline. ‘Faults’ has a fascinating and intriguing storyline that tackles a bizarre yet real subject that has gone relatively unexplored within the realms of film. It keeps you glued to the screen as it slowly unravels itself (and yet it never does fully). It is similar to the 2013 film ‘Enemy’ (starring Jake Gyllenhaal) in the sense that, the ending is really left to the viewers own interpretation. Now, unlike enemy, ‘Faults’ is much more straight forward and can be easily figured out with some though or a quick read however ‘Enemy’ tends to require the majority to watch a youtube video in order to understand what they just saw (an amazing film none the less). The storyline is executed with funny moments popping out of the unexpected during serious scenes however, this completely stops around the half way mark in order to integrate into the more serious tone adopted by the film.

The film is just long enough that it’s able to fit in all the important scenes but it’s not too long that the audience become bored. The ending feels slightly rushed however, it does what it was designed to do so I have no complaints.

The cinematography was superb; the angles and types of shots used were extremely pleasant to watch, not necessarily “easy on the eye” but they felt fresh. The experimental shots kept my interest and the use of zoomed out shots contrasted by very close up shots really provided an accent to the surroundings and helped convey what the characters must be feeling from the environment they were in. The fact that they were able to achieve such an effect from the simple locations and sets used is highly respectable.

The acting is incredible. Leland Orser (Ansel, in the film) really conveys the persona of being a desperate man whose life has gone wrong. He hates his life and you feel it. He’s hopeless at everything and you see it. He blames life on being unfair as opposed to admitting the failures within himself and he comes across as vulnerable inside and yet not so vulnerable on the surface; and he does it all so believably. Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Claire, in the film) comes across as truly crazy and yet at the same time you think she’s normal, you believe she’s been wrongly accused of being “controlled by others” but then, you see a complete other side. You slowly start to understand her as the film progresses and you feel like your in the shoes of Ansel (Leland Orser) as you slowly begin to empathise with her. It’s an incredible performance from both actors.

Overall, ‘Faults’ is a well executed film with amazing acting, a great, intriguing storyline and a truly excellent use of cinematography. Sure, some corners were cut, the ending felt just slightly rushed and was a little bit complicated, but it was good enough to make me want to watch the film again and again.

I feel like this film will be a love or hate relationship; some people will love it and some will hate it but the only way to find out is to watch it, its a thoroughly entertaining film none the less.

Deen Hussein.

Oh, and remember….

The only person you owe is yourself.

If you’ve seen the film, you know.