Movie Review: ‘Triangle’

A meticulously designed mystery-horror-thriller, Triangle is a twisty-turny mind-trip
Movie Review: ‘Triangle’
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10/14/2009
Updated:
10/1/2015
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How to talk about Triangle without giving the whole game away? It’s a task almost as tricksy as the film itself.

A meticulously designed mystery-horror-thriller, Triangle is a twisty-turny mind-trip about a disparate group of friends who get stranded at sea after freak weather conditions cause their yacht to capsize. Shortly after, a vast cruise ship appears on the horizon and subsequently rescues them from the watery depths. Once on board however, it swiftly becomes clear that all is not above-board as the ocean liner appears completely abandoned, whilst Jess (Melissa George) becomes increasingly convinced that she’s been aboard the vessel before…

Written and directed by Brit Christopher Smith, Triangle is a complex puzzle of a picture in both story and visual conception. Purportedly it took the talented Smith two years to complete the exacting script, and judging from the superb end product it comes as no surprise. Showcasing extraordinary attention to detail, like a mini-Lost, every single moment in Smith’s film is important for the cohesive whole.

Most head scratchingly impressive is that, despite this requisite-by-objective level of exactness, not a plot hole is to be found. Well, not by my feeble brain anyway. Perhaps on a second watch the intricate plot cohesion might erode somewhat but, when involved in the unfolding events for the first time, Triangle sails through the dangerous waters of continuity errors effortlessly.

Smith also manages to pull a phenomenal central performance from erstwhile “Angel off Home and Away” Melissa George. The film lives or dies by her bit and she doesn’t let the side down, turning in a career best performance and maybe, just maybe, elevating her status above the horror dross (The Amityville Horror remake/Turistas) and recurring TV roles (Alias/Grey’s Anatomy) that she’s thus far been constricted to.

The Twilight Zone by way of a particular fan-favourite film from 1993 that hogs repeat viewings over and over… and over (that’s your cryptic clue), Triangle really is a step up from Smith’s shock horror debut Creep and splatter-fest sophomore showing Severance, and should open wider doors for him in the film industry. On this impressive evidence he certainly deserves it.

[etRating value=“ 4”]