The Well

Directed by Hubert Davis, The Well follows several characters as they attempt to survive within a landscape destroyed by environmental collapse. It’s promising subject matter that’s slowly-but-surely squandered by Davis, as the filmmaker, armed with a script by Michael Capellupo and Kathleen Hepburn, delivers an egregiously (and often breathtakingly) deliberate drama that remains unable to capture the viewer’s interest and attention – with the arms-length atmosphere compounded by one-dimensional, far-from-sympathetic protagonists that simply aren’t compelling enough to carry such a spare narrative. (Sheila McCarthy’s less-than-subtle turn as the picture’s smug, psychotic villain remains a rare bright spot within the proceedings.) And while the movie admittedly looks great and is generally solidly made, The Well‘s excessively uneventful sensibilities ensure that it does, for the most part, feel much, much longer than its 91 minute runtime.

*1/2 out of ****