Color, R (language, drug use, violence, sexual situations), 98 min., PPV 90 days, DVD $19.95, VHS rental
Street: Dec. 21, Prebook: Nov. 30
First Run: Video premiere
Cast: Jonathan Tucker (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Jennifer Tilly (The Haunted Mansion), David Strathairn (A Map of the World), Dan Moran (Curse of the Jade Scorpion)
Director: Tanya Wexler
SCREEN MEDIA/UNIVERSAL
Young JJ (Tucker), clean and sober after a stint in rehab, returns home to find his sexy, alcoholic aunt Dot (Tilly) and his stepfather (Moran) are plotting to cash in on his life insurance. JJ has to stay clean to survive but the temptations are daunting. What a terrific movie--and what a tough sell. The relatives are evil in Relative Evil, and while the title is a far cry better than the original--Ball in the House--if this insightful, dramatic and thrilling little film is going to find an audience, it will have to be talked up. On the surface, a realistic drama about a young, recovering alcoholic trying to stay sober in a dysfunctional household is not necessarily the stuff of hit rentals, but the filmmakers surround the drama with danger--JJ is pursued by a violent drug dealer; his stepfather needs him dead before his birthday (which is a few days away) and his aunt uses sex to get him back on the sauce. It's disturbing, but it's couched in black comedy that heightens the thriller aspects. The production is excellent, shot in shoddy rooms with ratty furniture and lit by table lamps that make everyone look their worst. Relative Evil is an ambitious, intelligent and offbeat indie that deserves an audience.