The moral stance taken by Barret in this intelligent philosophical thriller is one that precludes any belief in a caring God or for that matter a caring society. Actually, his morality keeps defining itself by the events of the moment. Deeply affected by the horrible tragedy of the death of his parents, he wears a chip on his shoulder and avoids contact with mostly all humanity except for Ryan, who acts as his conscience throughout the film. Ryan maintains his hope for a world that makes sense and is compassionate. But by the end of the story, Ryan himself is engulphed by the blackness of the world, and we witness an awful tragedy.
Kudos to Vincent Pereira, who wrote, edited, and directed this sleeper. The acting and basic quality of the filmmaking is at times a bit amateurish, but who cares, since the object of this film is to make us think about our place in this world. Are people caring or do they exist merely to promote themselves and their own causes. The filmmaker presents a character who sees only the darkness of life, and I believe most of us know that life has many warm and tender moments.
Certainly a must see for thinking people everywhere.
