[SWALLOW opens Friday, March 13th at the Atlas
Diamond Centre Cinemas 16.]
Review by Bob Ignizio
Depicted as the stereotypical upper-class housewife, it
would seem as though Hunter (Haley Bennett) has everything she could want from
life. She lives in a nice house, has a good looking and seemingly considerate
husband in the person of Richie (Austin Stowell), and wants for nothing
material.
But in Carlo Mirabella-Davis’s SWALLOW, what some
would consider the American dream is far from it. Hunter’s day to day life offers
little opportunity for fulfillment beyond decorating her home. And it turns out
her seemingly perfect husband is kind of a douche. He’s not physically abusive,
but he has little if any interest in his wife’s thoughts and opinions.
The only other people in Hunter’s life are her in-laws, who
at best see her as an extension of their son and not as a real person. Richie’s
dad (David Rasche) barely acknowledges Hunter’s existence. Richie’s mother (Elizabeth
Marvel), on the other hand, makes passive aggressive comments and suggestions
to her daughter-in-law. Hunter’s own parents are notable by their absence, and
if she has any friends, we don’t see them.
