Descent (2007)

A college co-ed is brutally raped and struggles alone to rebuild her life.

Director:

Talia Lugacy

Writers:

Talia Lugacy, Brian Priest

Stars:

Rosario Dawson, Chad Faust, Marcus Patrick

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Rosario Dawson	...	Maya
Chad Faust	...	Jared
Marcus Patrick	...	Adrian
Vanessa Ferlito	...	Bodega Girl
Jonathan Neil Schneider	...	Archeology Professor (as Jon Schneider)
James A. Stephens	...	Professor Byron
Nicole Vicius	...	Melanie
Paul Sado	...	Downstairs Guy
Scott Bailey	...	Upstairs Guy
Tracie Thoms	...	Denise
Aisleagh Jackson	...	Construction Girl
Robert Lehrer	...	Speaker
Alexie Gilmore	...	Seline
Johnathan Tchaikovsky	...	Tyler
Colombe Jacobsen-Derstine	...	Nadia

Storyline

In the winter of her senior year, Maya talks to Jared at a frat party, accepts his invitation to dinner at a nice restaurant, then goes to his apartment, just to talk. He assaults her. Her personality changes, she's withdrawn; she graduates and takes a job at a clothing store, staying apart from co-workers. At night, she's someone else: a beauty at the club scene, dancing, seductive, sniffing cocaine, becoming the friend of a heavy hitter. She thinks about her racial identity. That fall, she's a grad student, and Jared is in an exam she proctors. She invites him to her apartment; he's certain she's stuck on him.

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Plot Keywords:

college | clothing store | cocaine | student | dancing | 

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for brutal rape, language, some sexual content and drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 April 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Extrema - Al limite della vendetta

Filming Locations:

Fairleigh Dickinson University - 285 Madison Avenue, Madison, New Jersey, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

City Lights Pictures, M.E.G.A. Films, Trybe Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min 94 min (R-rated)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Connections

References The Hunt for Red October (1990)

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Soundtracks

"Piano Sonata in A major D 959"
by Franz Schubert
Performed by Mike Scarna

User Reviews

pretty average

I rented this on DVD and I kind of feel bad since Dawson and Lugacy are so earnest about it in the DVD comments. It's not a bad movie exactly, but it's one of those films that desperately wants to be a deep comment on human nature while not realizing that its story is practically a genre. Plus, it is a little simplistic about the issue in a lot of ways, and the characters' behavior often strains belief. I'd say its a film that you would get something out of if you don't have a lot of film/TV/literature/life behind you (to be honest, I've seen almost exactly the same story in horror comics even). Otherwise, its point has been made before and more artfully. And that gets to the big problem, which is that it really doesn't have much of cinematic interest to it besides the point. It ends up being a fairly bland movie overall that invests everything in the idea that the basic story will be shocking and compelling, and it doesn't really pay off.