Talia Lugacy’s Descent is a challenging movie in that it will subvert your very perception of what we expect from characters in a film like this. Starring Rosario Dawson, Chad Faust and Marcus Patrick this movie is a 21st Century examination of the codes of relationships and the ethics that play into them. Due to the controversial, NC-17 nature of the subject matter in this film, I will give you a very brief rundown of it and then explore the themes that resonated the most with me. Dawson plays Maya who is very shockingly raped by Jared (Chad Faust). After this awful incident Maya tries to rebuild her life but ends up spiraling out of control. Drugs, parties and wild nights play into this as she develops a very strong bond with Adrian (Marcus Patrick). This could very well be where the story ends but writer/director Talia Lugacy has other ideas in mind. Maya, in what has to be a very weird circumstance, again crosses paths with Jared and it is here that Descent reaches its denouement.
What really intrigued me was the way this movie set up the relationship aspect. If one was to simply dip in and out of this movie, they would be quite confused because of the changes that our characters go through. Yet, it is these changes that are essential to the very fabric of human nature. How many times have we seen people go through an experience, only to come out as completely different on the other end? In my opinion this is what the title of the movie is talking about. The “descent” that we make after our worlds have been shattered. However, I also think that Lugacy is questioning whether the “descent” has to be negative or whether it has to end up as negative. Surely, the term “descent” has that connotation, and Maya is forever altered by the events that smash her life to pieces, but this is all part and parcel of a greater character study. In a lot of ways, I found Maya to be triumphant because of how she embraces her life once the events with Jared take place. Decide for yourself, but it is precisely the none black and white, gray area world that Descent resides in that makes it so intriguing.
The style of Descent is also interesting in that this movie looks and is paced like no other film out today. In fact, seeing as how it isn’t based on a comic and it certainly doesn’t have sequel/Comic-Con appeal, the fact that it even exists is something for filmmakers and people who like movies off the beaten path to get exited about. There is also an interesting use of reds, blacks and blues that really colors the palate on the screen. It is like it presents itself in an almost foreboding way all throughout this movie. Even when we see Maya at her lowest point, the colors seem to be saying that rock bottom is still somewhat far away. There is a depth, richness and even a statement that the compositions of this film seem to be putting across. It is because of this that to merely look at Descent as a revenge film is to take the lazy way out.
Talia Lugacy has made a film that is as provocative as it is entertaining. To be sure there will be people that will not be able to get past the rape scene. Others might have a hard time seeing Maya’s “descent.” Still others might wish for a hopeful ending and not get it in the way that they hoped for. Whatever the case, this filmmaker should be given a lot of credit for making a movie that reminded this writer of just how powerful images on the screen can be.
