The Mean Season

Directed by Phillip Borsos, The Mean Season follows reporter Malcolm Anderson (Kurt Russell) as he begins receiving phone calls from a killer and eventually finds himself becoming a part of the story. Filmmaker Borsos, armed with Leon Piedmont’s screenplay, does a superb job of immediately luring the viewer into the hit-and-miss proceedings, as The Mean Season kicks off with a tremendously engaging opening stretch that establishes Russell’s appealing character and the hectic world he inhabits – with the above-average vibe heightened by Borsos’ handling of the busy newsroom and its various employees (ie it just feels authentic, for the most part). It’s clear, then, that The Mean Season‘s impact is dampened by an exceedingly erratic midsection that isn’t quite as consistently enthralling as one might’ve hoped, although there’s little doubt that Borsos does an effective job of goosing the narrative with a handful of impressively electrifying moments – including Malcolm’s ongoing conversations with said killer and his encounter with a shady witness within a rundown trailer park. By the time the wildly over-the-top yet not entirely unsatisfying climax rolls around, The Mean Season‘s confirmed its place as a decent-enough endeavor that benefits from its atmospheric visuals and raft of top-notch performances.

*** out of ****