State's Evidence

Starring: Douglas Smith, Kris Lemche, & Alexa Vega

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

State's Evidence is a twisted, independent film, with a weird story, and an unbelievable ending. This film moves from one extreme to the other and really threw me for a curve, but the ending is so spectacular that it truly makes the whole movie worth while. Scott Byers (Douglas Smith) plays a young man who has decided to kill himself and if that wasn't bad enough he wants to do it on video for the world to see. Byers tells his friends of his plan and claims that once you know your fate, you are truly free to be yourself and do whatever your heart really desires. Not only does his group of introverted friends buy it hook, line, and sinker, but they ultimately decide to join him. The story eventually takes an ominous turn, when one of his friends darkest desires emerge, putting the whole group at serious risk. This film had a very low budget, so low in fact, that half of the film is shot by the actors themselves, on camcorder. It was a little stranger, but made for some interesting scenes. The cast is made up mostly of young actors who have little to no big screen experience, but you would never know it, because they were terrific. Movies like this can sometimes be a bit unpredictable and the solid performances given by the cast will really have you buying into ever emotion and situation their characters are feeling. Unfortunately, it's not all good news for State's Evidence, because while the beginning was intriguing and the ending was fantastic, the middle of the movie is very slow and seems to drag on, making it a challenge to even make it to the terrific ending. Most of this film chronicles a day in the life of a group of High School rejects and it most definitely has it moments. State's Evidence features a great young cast and an ending that will blow your mind, but parts of it drag on and the film felt a lot longer than it actually was and that's never a good sign.