Bruce Sweeney’s (Dirty) moody mystery opens in a darkened forest. Leslie (Gabrielle Rose) stands waiting for someone. Her cell phone rings, and we hear her half of the conversation: the person she was supposed to meet is backing out. There’s the slightest hint of fear in her voice; we know that something’s wrong, but not what. It’s a suspense that will be slowly whittled down over the course of the movie, as we’re challenged to believe or disbelieve our worst fears about this woman and her fate.

Mike (Nicholas Lea) is an unemployed realtor. In a film divided by flashbacks and scenes set in the present, we see the development of his love affair with Leslie and his fearful actions as he’s investigated by the police in connection with her disappearance. As the investigation moves forward, the flashbacks push closer to the mysterious centre of the story. Mike is a moral puzzle for the audience: even as we fear the worst about him we want to believe the best, because he shows signs of a basic human decency that conflict with the demands of his desperate situation. The film complicates our sense of empathy, dividing it between Leslie on the one hand and Mike and his family on the other. This is a rich, moving thriller in which character psychology and suspense are seamlessly merged.