Becky

Becky is extremely upset when she discovers that Jeff is engaged to Kayla and that she and her son will be coming into her life full-time. She goes out into the woods and hides in her fort with her dog, Diego (one of two dogs, the other being named Dora). The doorbell rings and Kayla answers while Jeff is outside, trying to find Becky. It’s Dominick claiming he lost his dog. He did not lose his dog, clearly, and thus begins one of the most riveting home invasion films I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching.

Becky offers up two to three of the more disturbing set-pieces I’ve seen in a film outside of the horror genre in quite some time. You may find yourself actually gasping, especially at one particular scene involving an eye. I mentioned the two dogs because there are thrilling scenes featuring both of them. Not one detail in the film is accidental. Everything comes back to haunt us later. Except for that damn key, what’s the big deal about this key?

“…one of the most riveting home invasion films I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching.”

The editing, by Alan Canant, helps tell a lot of the story, as we jump back and forth between Dominick and Becky. It tells us that Dominick and Becky are cut from the same psychotic cloth. The music by Nima Fakhrara fuels the adrenaline behind many action-packed sequences. What stands out most is Kevin James’ and Lulu Wilson’s performances. Kevin James takes your perception of him, tears it up like bits of paper and throws it in your face. The role of Dominick is a measured, frightening performance that I frankly never would have imagined him giving. As far as Lulu Wilson, she conveys teen angst and grief gone wrong in an extremely satisfying way.

Becky is a thrilling game of cat-and-mouse that leaves you unsure if the good guy is really that good at all. It’s funny at parts, shocking in parts, but mostly it’s just a great thriller that just so happens to have a 13-year-old girl as the heroine. It’s absolutely worth checking out, if you’re anything like me, you’ll be on the edge of your seat the whole time.