No Telling

Plot

Geoffrey (Stephen Ramsey) and Lillian (Miriam Healy-Louie) are a couple spending the summer in the country in hopes of smoothing over some rough patches in their relationship. However, Geoffrey, who is a research scientist, has brought his work with him, which hardly helps, since Lillian's biggest problem with him is that he doesn't spend any time with her, and he seems more concerned with his career than his marriage. This is all the more galling for Lillian because she has given up her career as an artist in order to be more supportive of Geoffrey's work. Geoffrey is also upset because he's only been able to use mice for his lab experiments with new medications, and he is eager to begin working with larger animals; in his impatience, he begins trapping dogs, and he eventually catches the pet of a little girl named Frances (Ashley Arcemont). Meanwhile, Alex Vine (David Van Tiegham) is a scientist and an expert in organic farming who is trying to convince growers in the area to give up chemical pesticides while he studies their impact on the ecosystem; however, most of the farmers are not interested, since the marginal amount of insect damage that would result from organic growing techniques would still make their crops unsuitable for many produce buyers. David Van Tiegham, who plays Alex, is also a well respected percussionist who has worked with Talking Heads and Brian Eno, and as a member of Laurie Anderson's group, he appeared in her concert film Home of the Brave. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Review

Without spilling a drop of human blood, this ecologically-minded thriller generates more fear than a stack of damsel-in-distress slasher flicks. Creepy enough to sustain maximum queasiness even during slower passages, No Telling sees science gone too far, natural law perverted, and man once again revealed to be history's greatest monster. The exploitation of animals to advance human knowledge is the ultimate horror, but the film is more than a simple anti-vivisection screed. Director Larry Fessenden's script (co-written with Beck Underwood) takes time to debate itself, even if there's no doubt where sympathies ultimately lie. A cast of natural, unknown faces brings No Telling to life, and the growing anxiety of the characters becomes unbearable until the final, horrible fruits of man's obsession with science are revealed. Fessenden has an eye for unique camera placement, most successfully a "runaway cam" effect he pulls out at appropriately disturbing moments. A fine debut and a thought-provoking entry into horror cinema. ~ Fred Beldin, Rovi

Cast

• Stephen Ramsey - Geoffrey Gaines
• David van Tieghem - Alex Vine

Miriam Healy-Louie - Lillian; Ashley Arcemont - Frances

Credit

Larry Fessenden - Director

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