The Swerve (film)

Last updated
The Swerve
Directed byDean Kapsalis
Written byDean Kapsalis
Produced byTommy Minnix
Starring
  • Azura Skye
    • Bryce Pinkham
    • Ashley Bell
CinematographyDaryl Pittman
Edited by
  • Alec Styborski
    • Dean Kapsalis
Music byMark Korven
Production
company
Spark Chamber
Distributed byEpic Pictures
Release date
Running time
95 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Swerve is a 2018 American horror-drama film written and directed by Dean Kapsalis. It delves into the complexities of mental illness through the life of Holly, played by Azura Skye. As a high school teacher in a quiet town, Holly grapples with personal challenges, including a strained marriage and haunting memories.

Contents

The film was released at the Thessaloniki International Film Festival on November 5, 2018. [1] It was released at subsequent film festivals and became available via streaming.

Plot

The Swerve follows Holly (Azura Skye), a high school teacher in a small town. Holly is married to Rob (Bryce Pinkham), who is focused on a promotion at the local supermarket, and is the mother to two teenage sons who frequently show impatience and irritation towards her. Despite her seemingly ordinary life, Holly is grappling with emotional and mental challenges.

Throughout her daily routine, Holly encounters a series of stressors. Her children often fault her for minor problems, and one of her high school students, Paul (Zach Rand), displays a concerning fascination with her, which is underscored when she finds troubling sketches of herself in his notebook. Holly's relationship with her estranged sister, Claudia (Ashley Bell), is fraught due to their shared difficult past. This tension surfaces during a family meal, where Claudia brings up a painful aspect of Holly's history, causing discomfort for Holly.

A mouse that frequently appears in Holly's house becomes an object of her fixation. Concurrently, visible signs of sleep deprivation and her regular visits to the medicine cabinet hint at her ongoing internal battles.

Holly starts to doubt her husband's loyalty and increasingly feels detached from her surroundings. This feeling intensifies when Holly has a distressing encounter with strangers on a remote road following a family event. This incident further muddies Holly's sense of reality, leading her to question her own experiences.

As events unfold, Holly's behavior becomes more erratic. The film depicts Holly's struggle, not as a result of a singular event but as an accumulation of various pressures.

Critical reception

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References

  1. "The Swerve". filmfestival.gr. Thessaloniki International Film Festival . Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  2. Kikta, Lorry (September 21, 2020). "The Swerve". Film Threat . Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  3. O'Malley, Sheila (September 22, 2020). "The Swerve". RogerEbert.com . Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  4. Conterio, Martyn (August 31, 2020). "FrightFest 2020: The Swerve review". CineVue. Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  5. Whittaker, Richard (October 2, 2020). "The Swerve". Austin Chronicle . Retrieved October 2, 2023.
  6. Moore, Roger (September 11, 2020). "Movie Review: A teacher goes off the rails after 'The Swerve'". Movie Nation. Retrieved October 2, 2023.