Josie (2018)

Directed by: Eric England | 84 minutes | drama, thriller | Actors: Sophie Turner, Dylan McDermott, Daeg Faerch, Kurt Fuller, Jack Kilmer, Robin Bartlett, Lombardo Boyar, Mickey Faerch, George Todd McLachlan, Jennifer Prediger

Josie (Sophie Turner) is young, beautiful, free, desirable and one big mystery. When she moves into a motel in a small town in the South of America, it attracts the attention of many men. The boys from her high school can’t take their eyes off her and lonely neighbor Hank (Dylan McDermott) is also completely intrigued from their first meeting. But why is she here? Where does she come from? What is she up to? And what does Hank have on his mind?

‘Josie’ floats a bit between different genres. There are some dramatic elements in it and an attempt is made to build up the tension. Delaying the backgrounds and motivations of both main characters certainly keeps you captivated. However, it is not exciting enough to have you on the edge of your seat. The atmosphere is dark and close to a film noir. The plot twists may be predictable, but they are certainly not bad either. Everything is right in principle, but there is just a little bit of tension missing for a “wow effect.” In addition, the ending is a bit too sentimental, which leaves you as a viewer with a slight anticlimax.

It is played well by both Turner and McDermott. It is mainly the script that leaves something to be desired. The themes of jealousy, revenge and tension between the adult neighbor and the underage high school student are very interesting, but much more could have been done with them. This makes the drama a bit too superficial. What is also striking is how Josie is portrayed as a femme fatale. Somehow it feels unnecessary to film her extra sexy while swimming in the pool. As viewers we can already see that she is a beautiful and strong young woman. It makes it somewhat flat how the camera images are constructed. It would have been much stronger if it hadn’t been chosen. We see enough mysterious seduction in Turner’s game already.

All in all, ‘Josie’ gets just enough. It is certainly intriguing enough at the beginning to make you want to see the film. The ingredients for a good drama or an exciting mystery noir are there. They are just not typed in on both sides.