Tilda Swinton as a determined mom attempting to cover up--against all possible odds--the accidental killing of a man at the hands of her gay son. Adapted from Elisabeth Sanxay Holding's novel "The Blank Wall", previously filmed in 1949 as "The Reckless Moment", "The Deep End" is a somber and stylish suspense-drama, but perhaps it was due to having two directors, Scott McGehee and David Siegel (also the co-adaptors of the screenplay), that the film feels overstuffed, unwieldy. Swinton's performance is everything it should be and has to be: she's both focused and frazzled, crazed and in control. Her character is a straightforward woman forced into taking short-cuts, and it doesn't allow Swinton any of the eccentric flourishes the actress has become known for on the indie film circuit. Still, even somewhat muted, Swinton delivers; in fact, she's the whole picture. The production is fine and the film's ambience is narcotizing, yet the script is full of ready-made coincidences--the outlandish kind which eventually formulate into what critic Roger Ebert dubbed "the idiot plot." Overall, a gripping and unnerving movie, but this mainly due to the work of its leading lady, not the script nor the handling. **1/2 from ****
Review of The Deep End
