Betrayal

Betrayal

Brothers played by Brian Vernel, Daniel Portman, and Calum Ross are out for revenge. They are seeking to kill their tyrannical father Don played here by Paul Higgins on a hunting expedition. As soon as they get rid of their father and bury him in the woods, they realize the spare key to the father’s vault was actually interred with the corpse. However once they retrieve the corpse, it is nowhere to be found. This lays seeds to a different story which explores the destiny of brotherhood and how much that bond can be stained before the knot is undone and each brother accuses the other of treachery.

BETRAYAL is not only a horror narrative but rarest type of boundary-pushing thriller mystery that cuts deep at emotional levels. It’s more than the brothers losing their mother just a while ago and harboring resentment towards their callous father, it’s the final nail in the coffin that drives the siblings to a vengeful journey. What further add wrinkles to their relationship is that every brother has a different kind of bond with the father.

Jon (Vernel) is the one who suffers the most in terms of physical damage as he is very simple-minded and easier to utilize by the others, but in most cases does get the worst of the abuse, Henry (Portman) suffers as well but like his father has a spiteful spirit and bullies his brothers as the second tyrant in the house, and Vince (Ross) does receive no abuse as the father’s favorite child, but bears witness to all the evils.

The story moves as the relationship between father and each sibling drives the story, and while they all hate their father, they all hate each other because of valid reasons, thus providing a character and writing perspective to the film that is superbly well-paced and filled with emotion.

The performances are commendable. Even though none of these actors are big names, the number of roles they have is more than enough, with Daniel Portman performing the most as a tortured character. Although he was something of a more sentimental character, in the movie GAME OF THRONES, here he does portray a great range.

The other noteworthy performance is by Paul Higgins who plays the abusive father. He is a restrained and gentle presence, even if he has an unhappy go almost by walking into any room and turning that happy mood into something else. But hey, the mood is calm, and I’m sure there are no weak performances in this taut drama.

BETRAYAL also had that nagging sense of foreboding in it’s narrative in that it could have been any one of the brothers who betrayed their oath made with blood to kill their father. The whole film is a whodunnit and does actually explores the relationship bonds of brothers and what it takes to sever them. This is interesting because I have a brother himself and that bond between brothers is often written about but never truly explored.

Therefore, this film has been particularly engrossing and touching for me, because I feel it has highlighted the strength of the bond between brothers and how even though they may be quite different, they can still refer to one another as brothers. I stand to be corrected, but I can’t recall watching a film as powerful and as mind bending as BETRAAYAL. The trailer however was a let down because it trained too much but overall I do not recommend watching it at all. Wonderful genre, a well thought of plot, absolutely must watch BETRAYAL.

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