Ahead of the Tribeca World Premiere of first-timer Clay Staub’s sci-fi thriller Devil’s Gate, we’ve got a sneak peek snippet showcasing the sort of tension festivalgoers are about to be subjected to when the film makes its debut this April 24th.
Penned by Staub and Peter Aperlo and starring Amanda Schull (“12 Monkeys”), Milo Ventimiglia (“Heroes,” Pathology), Shawn Ashmore (Frozen, X-Men: Days of Future Past), Bridget Regan (John Wick) and Jonathan Frakes (“Star Trek: The Next Generation”), Devil’s Gate finds Jackson (Ventimiglia), a taciturn man with a troubled past, failing to answer calls when his wife and son go missing. Accordingly, an FBI Agent (Schull) and Police Deputy (Ashmore) are sent in to investigate but when they arrive at the family’s remote farm outside Devil’s Gate, North Dakota, things are anything but what they had bargained for.
Commenting on the the genesis of the film, Staub stated that Devil’s Gate “explores the theme of abduction. This is something that has resurfaced many times from my buried story files, and ultimately derives from my love of monster movies going back to the Silent Era. Our concept here is, simply, what if someone actually turned the tables on one of these interlopers and held them captive? The ‘why’ and ‘how’ of this situation is insatiably gripping, and provided a rich jumping off point to open the story up to more complex world building.
Another less obvious, but possibly even more intriguing concept, is that of delving into the idea of loss in many forms – of our loved ones, of our innocence, and of our self-identity. What initially looks to be just another crime scene transforms metaphorically into a Petri dish for analyzing something darker and even more sinister. As in JAWS or NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, we intentionally strand our characters where outside help cannot protect them from the dangers that surround them, forcing them to confront these thorny questions: Do we know who we are, really? If our entire life has been a lie, do we continue the lie or do we forge our own reality?
Like the James Whale classic, FRANKENSTEIN, the ultimate question of control over a test subject (or lack of control) becomes the real issue. The unexpected self-awareness that one of the characters must confront, and then their actions are uniquely compelling. Like Frankenstein’s monster, the characters are led to seek meaning in the chaos that swirls around them and they must decide where their fundamental loyalties should lie.”
If the clip is anything to go by, this is one film not to be missed up at this year’s Tribeca and, in the meanwhile, we’ll leave you with the snippet along with the Tribeca screening dates.
Synopsis:
The wife and child of a man with a troubled past have gone missing. An FBI Agent and Police Deputy investigating the disappearance become trapped with him as night falls on his remote farm and find that nothing is as it seems.
TRIBECA SCREENINGS
Monday, April 24 at 9:00pm at Cinepolis Chelsea (260 West 23rd Street, between 7th & 8th Avenue) (WORLD PREMIERE)
Tuesday, April 25 at 12:30pm at Cinepolis Chelsea (P&I)
Thursday, April 27 at 10:45pm at Cinepolis Chelsea
Friday, April 28 at 10:15pm at Cinepolis Chelsea
Saturday, April 29 at 11:30pm at Regal Battery Park Stadium 11 (102 North End Ave)
Saturday, April 29 at 1:45pm at Cinepolis Chelsea (P&I)
Words: Howard Gorman – @HowardGorman
