Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘Paradise Cove’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the motion picture, ‘Paradise Cove’.
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There is a prevailing belief in our modern world, that our lowest points are a blessing more than a curse, and it is quite understandable as to why people hold to that particular notion. After all, we are beings that understand change is a constant and that in order to grow in life we need to go through both good and bad experiences. And if we genuinely take the time to examine a tough situation in an objective manner, once we’ve mourned or felt whatever it is, we need to feel… we can pick up the pieces and use the lessons we’ve learned to move into a new phase of our life. One that will bring us prosperity and peace since we have found value in our suffering. But while that notion brings us great comfort and strength, it is sadly… something that not everyone is able to subscribe to.
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Because for some people, those dark moments in life are the worst-case scenario they’ve feared for years, and seeing it come to fruition, outright puts them in a supremely bleak place mentally, from which there is no recovery. Or worse yet, the pain they carry from those ugly experiences, leaves them jaded and angry and dangerous, and ready to lash out upon the world; they feel attacked and abandoned them in their time of need. If anything, these are the folks that we don’t talk about enough in the world since they seemingly go against the grain of this beloved notion. But they deserve the same chance to thrive as anyone else and recently, a motion picture revolving around the dangers of ignoring people that are in this kind of pain hit the market, in Paradise Cove.

Now in this particular film, we are introduced to Knox and Tracey Bannett, who have just arrived in Malibu to take ownership of a beachside home that they’ve inherited from Knox’s late mother. A home that they plan to renovate and flip so that they can finally have a little money to live out their dreams and start the family they’ve always wanted. But there is just one little problem when it comes to their future plans, in that… beneath the house is a squatter named Bree. Who was once a rising starlet before tragedy struck, and she is of the opinion that a little bad blood with Knox’s mother, the kind that saw Bree lose the house to dear old mom… warrants a measure of revenge. And now she will stop at nothing to ensure that Knox and Tracey pay for the sins of the mother, and the chaos of the world that Bree cannot comprehend. 

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So, make no mistake about it… this is a supremely devastating and bleak thriller, largely thanks to the fact that Bree is a tragedy come to life. Because she really is the embodiment of a broken human being. Since she has no hope or belief in anything, anymore, and she’s locked herself into thinking that if she can just make the right person pay for the sins the world committed against her, that she will finally find some semblance of happiness and she can start to put the pieces of her life back together. Which obviously, isn’t the case in the slightest. But seeing that kind of raw anger and pain on display in this story, lends a genuine sense of realism to it. Since we’ve all encountered people who blame others for their problems or they are keen to go after their fellow man to resolve their pain and that makes this film fascinating and compelling and frustrating to say the least. 

Because it is inherently obvious, that if Knox or Tracy or anyone in their neck of the woods, saw Bree as more than a simple statistic and offered genuine kindness and assistance, then perhaps the grand tragedy of this story would never play out. Since Bree is in dire need of help and direction. But alas, that never happens, and the end result is ugly to say the least, which brings about the frustration in question and it also gives the viewer pause. Since this aspect of the story, more or less provides the audience with some powerful commentary on how the homeless are viewed in America right now and how the system has failed them. Since they have little resources to get them on the right path and this movie deserves serious props for injecting all of this into a story that is at its core, a thriller.

Which is an element that is indeed present in this particular tale. For one Bree reaches the point of no return mentally, she is a force of terrifying nature in this film, and all you can do is sit back and see where the terror takes you and really, in the end, this really is quite the engrossing motion picture. Simply because it offers up a different kind of home invasion/evil neighbor story, one that features depth to the malice and is also filled to the brim with dynamic performances from the cast. Since Todd Grinnell (Knox) and Mena Suvari (Tracey) do a wonderful job of selling the frustration and terror that comes with having one’s home violated and of course, Kristin Bauer van Straten, who plays Bree… outright steals the show. Thanks to her earnest and dynamic portrayal of a broken women that has been swept away by the swirling waves of chaos that life sometimes sends our way.

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