Feedback

By: Maggie Stankiewicz

Writer-director Pedro Alonso’s debut feature length film Feedback is a visually and thematically dark tale that covers topics pulled directly from the headlines and packages them into a provocative bundle of malaise. As a genre film Feedback is a compact thriller that pushes its plot forward without wasting precious moments on exposition or filler. From a human perspective; however, the film dances a little too far into devil’s advocate territory – feeding into dangerous narratives that threaten the integrity of victims and survivors while validating the vindication of their abusers. Feedback, for all its potential to be a fresh and entertaining spin on the horror/thriller genre, is too non-committal in its message to evade criticism.

In a compelling performance Jarvis Dolan (Eddie Marsan) portrays an outspoken leftist DJ who openly criticizes Brexit, the marginalization of minorities, and presents other keystone qualities of a “good” person. His open support of more liberal causes has a history of getting him into trouble and even previously got him kidnapped by more conservative listeners hoping to punish him for his politics. This incident only seemed to fuel Jarvis. That is until he is once again put into a situation in which his life is placed in the hands of violent captors. One night during a broadcast Jarvis realizes that his producer Claire (Ivana Baquero) and co-host Andrew (Paul Anderson) are missing. What he soon finds is that they’re being held hostage by two armed men, played by Richard Brake and Oliver Coopersmith.

The assailants inform the media personalities that they are there to urge a confession out of Jarvis and Andrew regarding an incident that occurred years prior in a hotel room. Yes, that kind of incident. The hostage-takers have written an admission script for Jarvis to read on the air, confessing his and Andrew’s roles in the sexual assault of a young woman. This is where the film stumbles and struggles to reconcile with its own responsibility as a contribution to our culture. The film portrays the captors as violent, ruthless assailants exploiting the fake news surge while insisting that those who present themselves as liberal, “of the people” personalities, are the true villains of the story.

Of course, it is correct in its assertion that the powerful and charismatic have an upper hand at fooling the masses and hiding their own atrocities, but it is wrong in its insistence that victims are violent brutes circumventing the justice system for sick fun. Feedback isn’t sure who it believes or who it wants to support from a narrative perspective. Visually, it does an exceptional job at using lighting and acoustics to highlight the subject of the film and the harsh light of truth, but it’s desire to be a complex, intellectual thriller pushes it into dangerous territory.

This isn’t to say that Feedback is a bad movie. In fact, it’s a good one with a wide appeal for audiences who enjoy similarly tense and claustrophobic films like Panic Room. The performances are rich, dialogue nuanced and the direction skilled – but it’s just not enough to forgive the murky waters of vigilante victims and unforgivable crimes. There are no good or likable characters in this film, despite its strong cast, and that makes it incredibly difficult to root for one side of the central conflict over the other even though the more respectable party should be apparent.

Give Feedback your time if you’re looking for a fresh thriller, but feel free to skip it if you find it difficult to check cultural baggage at the door. For this viewer though, that’s easier said than done.