BLOW THE MAN DOWN

Jeri Jacquin

Coming to Amazon Prime from writer/directors Bridget Savage Cole, Danielle Krudy and Amazon Studios comes a story of twists and a town singing BLOW THE MAN DOWN.

Priscilla (Sophie Lowe) and Mary Beth Connolly (Morgan Saylor) are mourning the death of their mother, Mary Margaret. Living in a small fishing village, everyone comes to try and support the girls including their mother’s friends Gail (Annette O’Toole), Doreen (Marceline Hugot) and Susie (June Squibb).

Hearing people talk, Mary Beth finds out that they might lose the house and gets upset with Priscilla. To get away she heads to the local bar and meets Gorski (Ebon Moss-Bachrach). Going back to his place, things don’t go very well, and chaos breaks out. Going home to get help from Priscilla, they try to cover up the mess.

The next morning at the store owned by their mother, Priscilla discovers she is missing something that could get themselves in trouble. Opening their front door, she sees Enid (Margo Martindale), also a friend of their mother’s but not welcomed by the other three in the group.

Officer Coletti (Skipp Sudduth) also knocks wanting to borrow their boat since they’ve found a body. Pricilla goes along but doesn’t recognize who the girl is but Alexis (Gayle Rankin) knows exactly who the victim is. Now, there are more secrets than that of Pricilla and Mary Beth, secrets that go further than they could ever have imagined.

The shock has ripples that show no mercy.

Lowe as Priscilla is the calm and collected sister who thinks things through and realizes that their mother’s death brings a new set of realities. As mad as she gets at Mary Beth, there isn’t anything she wouldn’t do for her – anything. Lowe is such a presence in the film and I just couldn’t take my eyes off her.

Saylor as Mary Beth is outrageous and has anger towards what she feels is a year of her life wasted. Making a crazy decision is what gets the sisters into a mess that doesn’t seem to have a way out – even if she thinks she’s found a way out. Saylor goes with the flow of craziness in a way I never could.

Moss-Bachrach as Gorski isn’t happy with the life in this small town and how he makes his living. There is a streak about him that is disconcerting and he’s so good at it. Sudduth as Coletti is an officer who is trying to discover who murdered the girl, but he isn’t getting help from anybody in town. They have their secrets and aren’t about to share them with the law.

O’Toole as Gail, Hugot as Doreen and Squibb as Susie are the three ladies I’d love to hang out with. They keep their eye on everything that happens in their little town and don’t take any nonsense. That seems to be the difference between them and Martindale as Enid. Enid is trouble waiting to explode and the three ladies aren’t happy with the nonsense she is causing in their town. When they see Alexis played by Rankin, it is time to put their foot down, but Enid isn’t the type to take anything from anyone – even her ‘so-called’ friends. Martindale has the unique ability to play the most amazing characters, from a loving character to a down right bitch, she excels and in this film she doesn’t disappoint.

Shout out to the Singing Fisherman, I absolutely loved their singing and thought where they were placed in the film was absolutely stellar.

Other cast include Will Brittain as Officer Justin Brennan, Owen Burke as Paulie, Thomas Kee as Declan Crawley, David Coffin, David Pridemore, Adam Mayerson and Mark S. Cartier as the Singing Fisherman.

BLOW THE MAN DOWN is a story of sisters, friendships and the secrets a little town can have that are almost impossible to penetrate. The characters are completely memorable, and I don’t think I will forget any of them for a very long time.

I absolutely love the originality of the film and the way writers/directors Bridget Savage Cole and Danielle Krudy left my jaw dropping constantly. This isn’t just one storyline – it is several and they all mesh in an amazing way and wrap up beautifully.

If you are looking for something twisted, unusual and stunning to watch then you need to see BLOW THE MAN DOWN because discussions will be had after.

In the end – it is a small town with big secrets!