Zipper

Sam Ellis, (Patrick Wilson, “The Conjuring,” “Insidious”) a prosecutor in the spotlight who is being groomed to take a seat on the U.S. congress, has it all. He’s got good friends, a child James (Kelton DuMont, The Astronaut Wives’ Club) who is his world – and a beautiful, wife, Jeannie (Lena Headey, Game of Thrones, “300”) who is the love of his life, or so he thought, until one night a proposition from an intern, Dalia (Diana Argon, Glee) leads his passions towards other temptations. In the blink of an eye Sam finds himself overcome with desire for other women and decides he must give in to his passions, and that he must do so discreetly, so he contacts an escort service and after having a successful introduction to the company’s services he becomes a repeat client, a decision which can cost him everything he cares about.

Written and Directed by Mora Stephens, “Zipper” has a bold story with production values that go above and beyond what is necessary to turn curious audiences into instant addicts of the film. The movie’s intense nature doesn’t hesitiate to ask the question of what causes us to stray physically from the one we are in love with while our heart still stays with them. Character development fell a little short which takes away from the audience’s ability to judge the characters’ actions, a feature that films of this nature usually rely on for both box office survival and differentiation between a dramatic thriller and pornography with good storyline. However, the performances were very well executed with clear motivations, which worked well with the directing choices to support the belly of the film. These performances are limited to Wilson and Heady but also include John Cho (EJ, “Star Trek-2009,” “Harold and Kumar”), Ray Winestone (Coaker, “Noah,” “Snow White and the Huntsman”) and Richard Dreyfuss (George Hiller, “Red,” “Jaws”). As an audience member I found the film enjoyable and worth the price of a New York film ticket.