Film Review: Rule of Three (2008)

SYNOPSIS:

A suspenseful film-noir that takes place at three points in time within a single motel room, viewing the events before, during, and after a college graduate’s abduction

REVIEW:

“Rule of Three” directed and story by Eric Shapiro is one of those films that starts very somber and builds as it goes along. Sometimes horror is more effective when it’s subtle and less assuming. Rule of 3 takes that road and proves it can pull it off in the process. By using the intersection of 3 stories that each revolve around 3 individuals “Rule of 3” takes a more classic approach to the genre.

As we come into a scene in progress, we learn that the Lo (Rhoda Jordan) the daughter of Jon (Ben Siegler) and Janet (Inger Tudor) has been missing for 2 weeks. The concerned parents of course are at wits end to pull in some answers. The local authorities have taken a rather lackluster approach, so the father decides he’d be better served taking action than just waiting around. With a news post live on TV , they hope that the message will bring in some leads. Unfortunately all is still quiet. Jon not content to take it all with a grain of salt, revisits the hotel room she called from to look for clues. Even with it being 2 week later and obviously cleaned several times he is determined to find something.

This is when the story steps back 2 weeks to lay down the timeline of events that occured. Lo and her boyfriend Jake (Cary Woodworth) are staying at the hotel for a getaway. Upon conversations, they both come to the agreement that adding another female to a lovemaking session would be good for them while providing something new. In ways, the process in which Jake goes about looking for this 3rd participant are pretty funny. Awkward and anxious they attempt to call several former friends to enlist into their idea. Finally they find a willing participant in Dana (Tiffany Shepis) who appears to enjoy being with Jake a bit too much. This of course brings Lo to tears who afterwards realizes that the idea really wasn’t such a great one.

On the flip side Brian (Lee Schall) a nervous business man, sits in his hotel room awaiting a visit from a his friend Sara. In this particular visit, he has plans for Sara per way of calling in a lead to bring him some “roofies”. Nervous, shy and awkward he deals with the local drug dealer. Beyond exchanging words they come to an agreement in favor of the dealer not walking away and leaving Brian empty handed.

The whole thing is fishy and out of the ordinary as the Brian tries to keep his cool during the meeting. Well as things would have it the story leads to the 2 events colliding into a bit of chaos unanticipated. The film plays out the details in mystery fashion but also reveals a bit of the horror that comes out of chance and bad timing. While certain events you can almost see coming, the finale provides even more punch with the darkness that lurks in the human soul.

A great low budget film that builds nicely on a strong story. No it’s not your usual batch of gore, slashers and hell unleashed but it is something different that bases its entire presentation of story driven materiel. Tiffany Shepis takes on the role like a pro and delivers full force. Also actor Rodney Eastman brings a certain confidence to his role that sets the bar of the acting talent on board. Rule of 3 is Eric Shapiro’s first film release and directing role. Though he handles the reigns with a nice flair for capturing emotion in the camera and proves he can put together a pretty compelling storyline.

Sexy, dramatic and thrilling …would be the best words to describe this little gem. There is not alot in the way of high budget finesse and fancy visuals for viewers, but in this case that aspect isn’t really needed.

Rule of Three (2008)