Angels Crest (2011) User Reviews

Bad Reviews - Unknowing Reviewers

[taclark · 7/10 · 16 June 2012]

The power of this film depends on your perspective. Have you raised a 3-year old? Have you experienced the death of a child? Most importantly, is the story believable and can you put yourself in to it?

Unfortunately, few watching this film know it mirrors the real life story of Paul Wayment and his son Gage: The following are excerpts (Spoilers) from the real story found on pulitzer.org:

"Six inches of snow covered the small body. Gage lay in a fetal position, his hands clenched, his eyes wide open. His pajama legs were up to knees; his feet had worn through his thin booties. His throat was blue. In his eyes were frozen tears."

Paul Wayment's statement to the court: "If I could change places with my son, I would give up my life without question. But I can't. The life that I now live in is the hell that I alone created. The pain is incomprehensible. . . . The word 'sorry' does not even begin to express the feelings I now live with. . . . I admit full responsibility for my actions and will accept whatever punishment you deem appropriate."

"They found his body (the father) on a sloping ridge next to a pair of binoculars, a Pepsi Big Gulp and a Winchester .243 hunting rifle. He'd picked a spot, surrounded by quaking aspens, that provided a view of the hills where they'd searched for Gage. Julie George imagined his final afternoon. He'd sat with the binoculars, surveying where Gage died. At sunset--he would have waited for his beloved dusk--he'd put down the binoculars and picked up the rifle."

"At the courthouse that afternoon, (Judge) Hilder sat dazed in his chambers. Tears filled his eyes."

http://www.pulitzer.org/works/2002-Feature-Writing

Knowing the real story makes this film, Angel's Crest, much, much more powerful. It's too bad Angel's Crest wasn't made to be a true story with a follow up explanation at the end telling of the ongoing lives of the people involved.

Those that have rated this film poorly or written unflattering reviews might want to watch it again after reading the true-life story.

Guilt, Responsibility, Forgiveness: One Town, One Life, One Wrong Turn

[gradyharp · 7/10 · 31 December 2011]

ANGELS CREST is not a perfect movie: there are so many undeveloped sidebars that keeping everyone in a place where they seem to fit into the tale is difficult. But there are some powerful performances here and some cause for reflection that makes the movie very worthwhile watching. Based on the novel by the same name written by Leslie Schwartz, adapted for the screen by Catherine Trieschmann, and directed by Gaby Dellal, the story deals with numerous interactions of a small town populated with alcoholics, drug abusers, adulterers, and other strange types and how they deal with a tragedy that makes no sense.

Nate Denton (Ameko Eks Mass Carroll) is a 3 year old son of Ethan Denton (Thomas Dekkar in a breakout performance that deserves attention) who awakens one morning in his pathetic home to tell his beloved single dad that it is snowing. The father/son bond is strong and Ethan dresses them both to go out to view the beauty of the snowy countryside in their old truck. When they arrive at a perfect spot, Ethan turns to the backseat to take Nate out to make snowmen, but Nate has fallen asleep in this safety car seat. Ethan makes the truck warm, locks the truck and walks out to view the spectacle of winter, the deer, and the eloquent mountains. In a few minutes he returns - and Nate is gone! Ethan is terrified, begins shouting his son's name as he searches for him. The town is alerted and a search party begins. Nate's mother alcoholic mother Cindy (Lynn Collins) is notified of Nate's missing and begins her tirade on every person she meets. After an overnight search for Nate, Ethan discovers Nate's frozen body and is devastated. Ethan is taken into custody for a death stemming from negligence and the townspeople form sides as to Ethan's guilt. Among them is a waitress Angie (Mira Sorvino) and her small daughter Rosie (Emma Macgillivray), Ethan's friend Rusty (Joseph Morgan), a lesbian couple (Elizabeth McGovern and Kate Walsh), Cindy's preachy mother (Barbara Williams). and the local police. The town brings in the District Attorney (Jeremy Piven) who obviously has secrets of his won that mirror Ethan's crisis. The story is resolved in a strange and tragic manner, leaving many crises unsolved.

Thomas Dekkar gives such a fine performance that we are able to see inside his heart and head and soul. The supporting cast conveys the small town response to a tragedy among their own - who is guilty of what and how could the incident have ever occurred. There are many ideas created by the writers and the characters that are never realized fully, but the sense of human response to an accident is staggeringly real. There is much more to this film in retrospect, after watching it, that haunts the viewer.

Grady Harp

A Child Has Died – Let's Play the Blame Game

[Chris_Pandolfi · 6/10 · 30 December 2011]

Ethan Denton (Thomas Dekker) is barely an adult himself, and yet he already has a three-year-old son named Nate (Ameko Eks Mass Carroll). They live together in the snowy peaks of Angels Crest, a small working-class community nestled somewhere within the Rockies. One morning, Ethan notices fresh fallen snow. He decides it would be fun to take his son out into the wilderness to play, and so they drive there. He then leaves Nate in the car and goes into the woods to check out a herd of wild deer. It doesn't seem like a big deal. After all, the heat is set at maximum, the doors are locked, and Nate is safely secured in his car seat. It proves to be a monumental lapse of judgment on Ethan's part; upon his return ten minutes later, he realizes that Nate has gone missing. The ensuing search-and-rescue effort eventually leads to the discovery of Nate's lifeless body, half buried by the snow and located about a quarter mile away from the car.

I was initially drawn into the plot of "Angels Crest," as it quickly became apparent that it wasn't going for the obvious. I'll bet that, after reading the first paragraph, you thought I was describing the opening scenes of a mystery thriller. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but in this case, your instincts are wrong. Adapted from the novel by Leslie Schwartz, the film isn't about a needless death so much as the repercussions on the living; it closely examines the dynamics of a tight-knit community and how easily it can unravel in times of great emotional distress. It all boils down to morality – or, more accurately, how we believe our own sense of morality should apply to other people. When it comes to the death of a child, it's not simply a matter of everyone having an opinion; it's a matter of the need to assign blame. Someone always has to be responsible.

I said before that I was initially drawn in. As compelling as I found much of this film, I couldn't help but find some of its narrative techniques disagreeable. Two things stick out in my mind. Firstly, some of the characters are badly underwritten while others are one-note caricatures. Secondly, all leads up to an unearned and emotionally manipulative ending that only gives the illusion of ambiguity. I don't think this is a bad movie at all, but I am very disappointed that it never became the great movie it so clearly should have been, given its examination of attitudes and people (those that were well developed, at any rate).

For now, I'll focus on what I liked about this movie, and thankfully, it amounts to more than what I disliked. I mentioned earlier morality and the need to assign blame; those that know Ethan, which is just about everyone in Angels Crest, have very definite opinions about him. They only intensify after he appears before a judge and enters a plea of not guilty. Some are convinced that he was a negligent father and, for all intents and purposes, a murderer. Others believe that he's a basically decent person who simply made a bad decision. Others still believe that he was too young to have a child in the first place. It's clear that Ethan wracked with guilt. He will spend a great deal of time researching the child safety seat Nate was strapped into. He will even buy several of them and take them apart, desperate to find some kind of manufacturing flaw.

The other part of this story is Nate's estranged mother, Cindy (Lynn Collins). Her alcoholism, which has only gotten worse since the tragedy, is actually what landed Nate in Ethan's custody. Naturally, she thinks it's his fault their son is dead. As the film progresses, she begins to realize that it may not be that clear cut. At this point, it appears the discussion of morality and blame has just gotten much more interesting. If she wasn't a drinker, would Nate be alive today? Would he have been born at all? Given their young ages, I suspect alcohol played a part in him being conceived. Into Cindy's life reenters her religious mother (Barbara Williams). On the outside, she's calm and caring. She even tells Ethan that what happened wasn't his fault. But the cracks begin to show as her daughter's behavior becomes more careless. What does she really think of Ethan? Who does she really blame for Nate's death?

If the entire film had stuck to this level of storytelling, it would have been a true dramatic gem. Alas, we're bombarded with superfluous subplots, all involving people who are at best indirectly involved with Ethan. The worst character is Jack (Jeremy Piven), the prosecution attorney who has what appears to be a personal vendetta against Ethan. His reasons are left a little obscure; the best we get is a vague reference to his own painful loss. Perhaps if the filmmakers had bothered to delve a little more deeply into this character, we would have had a reason to care about his hostility. And then there's the ending, mentioned earlier. I truly don't know what director Gaby Dellal was thinking when she decided to include it. Movies like "Angels Crest" don't benefit from heavy-handed, manufactured conclusions, especially when they had not been building up to them.

-- Chris Pandolfi (www.atatheaternearyou.net)

This movie sucked!

[Valntime1 · 3 December 2012]

I am Paul Wayment's sister and this movie doesn't even remotely resemble my brother's life... It was a cowardly attempt to write a story and present it in a way that cheaply takes pieces out of a horrific real life situation and pass it off as cinema.

The story of my brother Paul and his son Gage is heart breaking...and teaches human frailties and timeless lessons. Please don't compare this piece of trash to my brother's tragedy. The Pulitzer Prize written story about Paul Wayment is a more accurate piece than what was loosely written in a book or screenplay. A story as haunting as my brother's needs to be told as a true story. There are countless lessons to be drawn but this movie takes a powerful story and destroys any good that could have come from it. Sorry hated it.

Cannot see the point.

[barberic-695-574135 · 6/10 · 30 June 2018]

Simple story with no twist or purpose really. Thousands of kids go missing every year and this story just reminds those families how easy it can happen. The film tells a simple tragic story with little to no entertainment value. Story line is thin, acting in most cases questionable and direction amateurish. Would we watch it again - No. Not retained for future viewing.

Bleak and Unforgiving

[lavatch · 7/10 · 4 July 2021]

To watch "Angels Crest" is a daunting experience. Similar in many ways to "Manchester By the Sea," the film is a haunting tale filled with pathos and horror at the unforgiving nature of the flawed nature of humanity.

The stark beauty of the snow-capped mountains and endless vistas of the natural world are contrasted with the squalor of human life that ends in the death of a child. Ethan, a caring father, feels confident in leaving his little boy locked in his baby's car seat in the truck while he chases down some dear. But the kid loosens the buckle and walks out the vehicle to a wintry death. The rest of the film is the aftermath of that calamity.

The strength of the film was in a set of extremely detailed and unforgettable characters. All of the principals and secondary roles were full of contradictory impulses and the basic stuff of life.

An especially intriguing character was the district attorney, who wishes to prosecute Ethan to the fullest extent of the law. But there is an agenda behind the attorney's zeal that comes into focus when we see him weeping over the memory of the loss of his own child.

Everyone will have a personal favorite among this group of fascinating characters, anyone of whom is capable of suffering the same tragic fate of a decent dad and basically a good person like Ethan. If only the film were not so bleak and unforgiving of human frailty, it might have been a masterpiece.

Pointless and predictable

[RocknRollPt2 · 3/10 · 28 December 2011]

All the great vistas and quality cinematography, can't make up for the lackluster production and direction of this film. Thomas Dekker looks more like he should be playing Gerard Way in the "My Chemical Romance" story, than a grease monkey in a hillbilly town.

Then you have the textbook lesbian couple seen in almost all movies made in the past 10 years. Juxtaposed with the overtly religious mother with the alcoholic daughter, this story seems more like it's trying to please a film school students liberal teacher.

No heroes, no anti-heroes. No moral, no point.

Everyone seems to be in a rut here. No rhyme or reason.

A better name for this would be "Shit Happens".

Nice to see Mira Sorvino. I can't understand why she did this though. No opportunities for her to shine in this, but she plays her role well.

Same goes for Jeremy Piven, though in his case he should fire his agent. He's a great actor, and plays his part well, but seems constrained by the script and/or director.

Not bad, but not good either.

LOOSELY Based on Paul Wayment & Son Gage...

[setgetsiin · 6/10 · 4 July 2021]

...I had no idea this movie was (albeit VERY loosely) based on a true incident. It was due to the reviews that I learned this--Paul's sister Valerie commented. So I had to research.

VERY glad I did, as the true story was a lot more interesting than the movie. I don't know if I can put a link to the story that gets into the ex-wife, the attorney, the judge...a lot of stories were started in the movie (Jeremy Piven's character, in particular), but not finished. Search Paul Wayment & Judge Hilder in "latimes" to find all the details of what could have been an incredibly intense movie.

Personally, I enjoyed the movie. Again, so many storylines were TOUCHED upon, but never investigated. So with what we were viewing, in retrospect after the article, is sad and flat. The actors were good with what they were given: Lynn Collins was VERY believable as the alcoholic mother; Kate Walsh was AMAZING as Roxanne with some comedic lines in a very tragic story.

I lost my younger daughter to murder three years ago, so on some days I am drawn to movies dealing with that particular flavor if I need to commiserate which isn't terribly often. This movie helped, on some weird level.

The scenery was also incredible and soothing, when not terrifying.

Excruciatingly Bad

[Mustang92 · 1/10 · 26 October 2012]

OMG, where do I begin on this mess of a so-called "movie"? This film is so bad, I wanted to kill myself too when it was over.

Story problems:

1) The script is horrible. It's boring, mundane, and there's very little conflict in it. Yes, a father loses his son at the beginning, but the "inner conflict" of this father is missing. The director was horrible here, apparently not able to really show the pain/struggle this father was going through (until his first "suicide attempt" near the end). Actually, I have to blame three people for the lack of effective performance by Thomas Dekker: The writer for a bad script, the director who couldn't elicit even a semblance of a father in turmoil, and Dekker himself for not having the chops to pull this role off.

I actually heard just a few minutes of some interview the director did, who explained that the father killing himself at the end was not out of guilt, but out of a desire to be with his dead son in the afterlife. What???? We never saw that; we never saw or heard any conversation about the afterlife, we don't even know if the father thought an afterlife existed. I mean, come on, Herr Director, WTF are you thinking? Inventing some reasoning that isn't EVEN in the story, for what happens at the end? Are you nuts? If this is what you wanted in reasoning, then frickin' have the writer do a re-write.

Frankly, it's movies like this that give indie films a bad name. And turn people off from seeking out non-studio, non-formulaic films.

2) There are a lot of characters in this film. All of them are boring. We don't know who any of these people are, either. You keep thinking, expecting, that somewhere along the way, we'll know how people relate to one another and their connections with each other. No. Never happens. And of course we have a lesbian couple (no sex) because the writer and/or director wanted a lesbian couple as two characters in the film. Puuullleeeease.

3) Many story point issues, or story logic issues too. Here's an example: The 3 year old boy who leaves the vehicle in the snow (who subsequently dies) is eventually found. But the 20- 25 people in the search party couldn't find him (it was daylight), and the father couldn't find him. Yet, we learn late in the movie that the boy only died a quarter mile from the vehicle. (That's 2.5 city blocks long, for reference.) So you're telling me, that with the father screaming for his son, his son never heard him? Or, presuming a 3 year old would cry out for help at some point, no one would hear him 2.5 "blocks" away? Or that the search dogs couldn't track a person's scent for 2.5 "blocks"? Or that the 25 search party people would miss someone 2.5 "blocks" from what became their base camp? Or -- and this is the best one yet -- the father who saw the boy's tracks in the snow, couldn't follow these for 2.5 "blocks"?? Puuullleeeease. (And despite references to it being a blizzard later in the film... sorry, it wasn't a blizzard when the father left the vehicle to walk around, and it wasn't a blizzard when he came back to the vehicle to find his son missing.)

Performance problems:

There's some talent available, in the cast that was chosen. And it was all wasted, because these characters are all the SAME at the end of the film as they were at the beginning. No change, no growth, nothing interesting to watch. And by and large, all the performances were flat. I think this director just doesn't know how to direct actors and elicit compelling performances out of them. Well... she could get them to cry, because there must have been at least 10 instances where someone cries in the film. By the 6th time, you're reaching for the razor blades.

Directing problems:

Well, I've already trashed the director thus far, who at least deserves it for this piece of garbage. Look, the storyline had potential. (And I'm sure it did since it was based on a book.) But that potential was not realized in the screenplay, and certainly not via the direction. Drama and conflict is not attained by having all your characters be flat, with a few of them crying a bunch of times. Also, the pacing is really, REALLY bad. How bad? Someone walks out of a room (after an uneventful scene), but we hold on the empty room now for a couple of beats. I mean, that's ridiculous.

This movie is not worth your time. Unless you want to seriously torture yourself.

Full of all clichés of indie cinema

[saadgkhan · 2/10 · 2 April 2012]

Angel's Crest – TRASH IT (C- ) Angel's Crest is full of all the clichés of indie movies. The movie has an interesting plot where a young father losses his 3 years old son in the wilderness. Angel's Crest was supposed to be about the effects of kid's losing on the knit tight society. Angel's Crest has managed to grape a huge cast but sadly the bad screenplay and no characterization led to a poor execution of the movie. I use to think Thomas Dekker is a good actor but now watching him in various indie movies and TV shows. I realized that he is getting kind of boring. In Angel's Crest he was playing a father and first of all he didn't looked like a father and secondly which father does the eye rolling and looks more feminine? He was completely misfit in this role. Lynn Collin and Joseph Morgan did a decent job. Mira Sorvino, Elizabeth McGovern, Jeremy Piven and Kat Walsh were wasted in such pointless script. Overall, the heavy emotional part of the movie is lost between the bad screenplay and characterization.

Very good, recommended

[gmc1-823-758803 · 9/10 · 10 February 2015]

There is nothing challenging in the screenplay of this film, and the decision seems to have been taken to create a movie of a kind of easy access. It tries to treat a terrible occurrence in everyday lives, in a normal, small town community in those very terms, without making anything sensational.

The film deals with issues which are always relevant to so many people - loss, guilt, coping, addiction and, let me say kind of demonology perhaps in authority - in the most basic terms. Unlike similar kinds of films, this one never thinks it knows, never thinks it has to go beyond the fundamental realities of these situations in order to picture them well. For me, this leaves a lasting impression and means that I can think about these issues actually, much more easily than if I had not seen this film.

That's a rare occurrence in movies, to me. Usually I find that my mind is vacuumed by the end of a film, whether or not it was said to "deal with" issues or treat issues for discussion or awareness in the audience.

A nice, serious film which seems to present something of real life. Certainly of real life concerns, without patronising, feeling the need to suggest that life is more than life really is, nor getting lost in a fictional world of fantasies that have no real meaning for humans today.

There are twists, and the elements develop which allow the viewer to make conclusions for himself / herself. This then becomes the essence of this movie beyond the lovely cinematography, the latter becoming as an echo the expression of the ongoing, inexplicable beauty in life, a backdrop to the pain, struggles and torture.

Though the script is simple, with no pretensions or irrelevant ambitions, some viewers looking for something else may consider this a weakness in the film. For myself, it is a very strong point in a well crafted piece, from original idea, through very good, simple dramatic acting, to a full, beautiful, simple, understated presentation in the whole production.

Incredible bore

[Leofwine_draca · 2/10 · 21 September 2016]

I watched this film because the DVD cover fooled me. It renamed the movie as ABANDONED and featured an intense cover featuring a snowbound corpse and what looked like a hunter. Could it be an horror/thriller type film? The answer is nothing like. This is instead a small, community-focused drama entitled ANGELS CREST, made in Canada, and a film where virtually nothing happens for the entire running time.

The story is about a little kid who wanders off in the snow and ends up dying. This proceeds to act as a catalyst for all the relationships between the local townsfolk to implode at which point everybody blames each other, scapegoats emerge, and everyone spends the whole movie arguing. A few familiar faces, like Elizabeth McGovern and Mira Sorvino, show up and give quite horrid performances. There's very little incident and just a whole lot of unlikeable characters who you just wish would get off the screen. No atmosphere, no suspense, and very little drama, ANGELS CREST is a real bore.

Really Bad Screenplay Sinks Film

[Michael_Elliott · 28 December 2011]

Angels Crest (2011)

** (out of 4)

A small community is ripped apart when a father (Thomas Dekker) is charged with negligent homicide after his three-year-old son dies. The two were out on a trip when the father decided to go check something out and leave the kid sleeping in the truck. The son managed to get out of the vehicle, get lost and the next day he is discovered dead. After the father is charged a whole group of people act differently to the events. I'm sure director Gaby Dellal had high hopes for this film and I'm sure the subject matter was something very close to her but she should have requested a re-write because the screenplay here is a complete mess that thinks it's something deep but at the end of the picture you realize that it's nothing but one shallow character and situation after another. There's no question that 100% of the blame must go towards the screenplay because every single one of the characters are shallow, boring and it's impossible to care for them. As I watched the movie I kept wondering what emotion I was supposed to be feeling, who was I supposed to be feeling it for and there are just scenes that take place, take you down one direction and then it just cuts off and you're sitting there wondering what the entire point was. We see the father struggle over guilt. Understandable. We learn that the child's mother is a worthless piece of drunk trash. There's a restaurant owner (Mira Sorvino) who has some of her own secrets. There's a lesbian couple who can't agree whether the dad is to blame. For some reason one of the lesbian's sons shows up and of course he hates gay people. There's even the father's best friend who just happens to be sleeping with the mother. All of these characters enter, say dialogue but you're never quite sure why they're there and in the end none of their stories come together for anything. You even have Jeremy Piven playing the D.A. who has his own past that he's hiding from. I'm sure the point of the film was to try and show what one event would have on a large group of people but the film is a complete failure. I will say that the opening ten-minutes were effect but this is due mostly to the subject matter. Seeing such a young kid die isn't easy to watch so of course it's going to be disturbing. Everything that follows is just one big mess. Performances are decent at best but you can tell they're drowning as it seems none of the actors know what to do and they appear to just go around without cause. ANGELS CREST has an interesting idea but sadly it goes nowhere and the film runs out of gas even before it can get going.

Sleeper movie

[jfarms1956 · 3/10 · 7 April 2013]

This movie is for the over 30 crowd. There is not enough action in it to hold interest for younger viewers. There is too much time spent in the movie with people running around and cursing one another. The actors try to do a good job, but with a bad script, it makes it difficult. The movie should not have spent so much time with the people running around trying to find the boy and condemning each other. More time should have been spent after finding the boy and contemplating what it meant to each of them (fewer supporting cast members). Loss of a child is more of a personal tragedy. The finding of the child did provide poignant moments. I would not watch this movie again, but I can understand how it might help those who have lost children knowing that others suffer as well. Bad things happen to good people. If movies can't entertain or teach, they should be able to help us somehow in our own lives. I give it 3 thumbs for those it might help.

Not a lot to smile about

[wruzek · 4/10 · 29 July 2021]

Didn't know the outcome but was hoping for redemption in this Alaska winter movie. It's got to be tough living those cold winters. Beside the slow pace, the bleakness didn't make for happiness. Added to that is the Hollywood requirement of a single blasphemy of Jesus whose love the movie could sure have used.

Tragic story poorly represented here

[skpn123 · 2/10 · 17 November 2020]

Angel's Crest aka Abandoned has an impressive cast but including the incredible Thomas Dekker who is the master of believable angst without it being overdone. But sadly the bad screenplay and poor characterization led to a disjointed, overplayed, horrible and totally depressing execution. The ending though true to the real story is totally tragic and will haunt me for weeks.....

Poignant and beautiful portrayal of loss

[rmm0573 · 10/10 · 15 February 2012]

This is a realistic and heart wrenching movie about loss and imperfection. Anyone with children has had a moment where you turn your back or look away and when you turn back there is a total sense of panic when you don't know if your child is safe. This father makes a big error in judgement, but that isn't what this movie is about. It's about the fragile connections we have with other people, the way people (even the district attorney) try to make sense out of the senseless things in life. Like in life, there is a tragedy that touches many lives and it can't be dealt with by just assigning blame to someone. The actors all did a beautiful job of portraying the complicated emotions people have when dealing with loss.

A Horrid Adaptation with Pretty Scenery

[track100 · 28 December 2011]

Angel's Crest contains lots of pretty pictures with actors doing bland unmotivated performances. The director spent too much time perfecting the setting instead of working on developing the characters. It was just a lousy adaptation of the novel. Half of the supporting characters should have been left out, so they could have given the main characters something to do besides drinking, smoking, and slowly walking around. Law & Order episodes can do more in 44 minutes than this movie did in 2 hours. Jeremy Piven barely had time to do anything; it felt like he shot his part in two days or something. Lynn Collins was gross and not much else.

It's a pretty looking waste of time that didn't earn it's ending. A typical not-good-enough-for-a-real-release Magnolia presentation.

Awful Casting!

[smfishe2 · 22 March 2014]

Where to start? Like Scrabble, all the pieces are there! Thomas Dekker. Thomas Dekker looks like what Michael Jackson might have hoped for with his 23rd plastic surgery. Thomas Dekker could don a long hair wig and play a female role without any further assistance from the make up department. Am I supposed to believe that this guys is a rugged outdoorsman? Jeremy Piven should have played the lead role! You dragged him out the way up to Canada for his short role! The producer should have kicked out the extra dough to cast Piven as the lead! You might have made your money back! The fact is, any male actor in this film would have been better in the lead role than Dekker. Dekker's luscious eye lashes and gentle features are a huge distraction! He is a pretty boy cast for a role that requires someone a bit more rugged, to put it lightly! This story is excellent and could have been knocked out of the park with some better casting decisions!