Review by John Delia
A surprise filled film, the movie South of Heaven has been released on Blu-ray and DVD for home viewing. The film gets exciting as it moves along with a lot of twist while establishing the characters developed by Director and co-screenwriter Aharon KIeshales. The fast moving story gets emotional while it spellbinds the viewer in its crime based theme with the many unexpected shocks leading to a turbulent finale.
The film opens with Jimmy Ray (Jason Sudeikis) in front of a review board at a prison. After serving 12 years of his 15 year sentence for armed robbery and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, he appeals for early release on good behavior and to be with his long-time fiancée Annie (Evangeline Lilly). She has been diagnosed with cancer with a limited time before her expected death. All things are going smoothly until he gets introduced to Schmidt, his Parole Officer, who pressures him to do some dirty work involving mobster Whit Price (Mike Colter).
When an untimely accident puts Jimmy and Annie in the middle of a rift between Schmidt and Whit, they find themselves in the middle of all the action. Director and co-screenwriter Aharon KIeshales does a terrific job of keeping the audience in suspense and tripping up any chance to predict any of the twists.
Enjoyable to watch, the film took me on an unexpected journey with fine acting by Jason Sudeikis and Evangeline Lilly leading the cast. Sudeikis, mostly known for his quick wit and light dramas does an about face in this thriller. Here he shows some dramatic empathy for his fiancée whose life is being taken due to cancer. Wanting to give her back what the two of them have lost due to his imprisonment, he’ll do anything to make up for the loss, even kill. It’s a good project for Jason and he does an excellent job of the depiction of Jimmy Ray.
Evangeline Lilly, best known for her character Hope Van Dyne in Ant-Man and Avengers: Endgame, makes a very good Annie in this crime drama. She doesn’t overdo the heartbreak of her illness, accepting what is inevitable yet taking every minute with the one she loves. And. even if it means putting herself in the middle of the danger. You’ll see her again as Hope in a 2023 release of “Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania” that has already wrapped.
A special tip of the hat to Mike Colter as the gangster who shows no pity when it comes to business as usual. A sly crime lord, he’ll get everything he can out of the person that offends him, even if he’ innocent of the wrong deed of which he’s accusing. His sinister performance should attract attention to other filmmakers so he can extend his film credits. He’s best known for his character David Acosta in the 26 episodes of TV’s “Evil”.
South of Heaven has not been rated by the MPAA, but contains violence, language, sex and drug use. The film is now available on Blu-ray and DVD where videos are sold. 4 out of 5 stars.
Specifications and additional video information:
Cast: Jason Sudeikis, Evangeline Lilly, Mike Colter, Shea Whigham, Jeremy Bobb, Amaury Nolasco
Directed and co-written by: Aharon Keshales
Genre: Action, Crime, Drama
MPAA Rating: Not Rated, violence, drug use, language, sex
Running Time: 2 hrs.
Video Release Date: December 14, 2021
Language: English
Reviewed Format: Blu-ray
Subtitles: Available in English and Spanish
Distributed by: RLJE Films
Released on: Blu-ray, DVD