The Quarry

Its leads deliver, individually and especially together, and Teems somehow manages to sound a note of reserved hope at the picture’s conclusion, without sacrificing the inherent nihilism of the genre.

An ambitious combination of suspense thriller and brooding treatise on existential themes, The Quarry feels like a throwback to the era of late-night cable movies, when art, ambition and genre pulp would often collide.

But Teems and his team get a nice spin on Southern Gothic tropes and types, and The Quarry makes for a slow, simmering tale that has glorious performances and rewards, even in its noticeable shortcomings.

One note portrayals, skin deep characters, and a glacial pace all combine to prevent The Quarry from succeeding either as a slow-burn thriller or a message-oriented drama.

Although The Quarry feels lackluster in its execution, it's an intriguing story of redemption that's largely carried by a captivating Michael Shannon.

This muddled slow-burn tragedy — adapted from the Damon Galgut novel of the same name — is unfocused and overly familiar. It also fumbles its political commentary.

The film plays as if it’s been smothered under a pile of rocks.