Josie

Released in 2018 before the film's star, Dylan McDermott, went to film <I><A HREF="https://boxd.it/jRjM">The Clovehitch Killer</A></i>, <I>Josie</i> introduces us to both a reclusive man named Hank (McDermott) and a high school student who's new in town (Sophie Turner).

Hank is a mysterious character. A man of very few words, he spends his days monitoring the students at the local high school, most who mistreat him, or with his tortoises, who are stationed on his porch in a habitat he built for them. Still, there's a mystery that lurks around him, which we see with a mysterious figure dressed in orange prison-like clothing that appears in a few scenes.

An unlikely friendship between Josie and Hank forms, raising eyebrows from neighbors (as they should given that she's 18 and he's in his 40s), but there's something there that doesn't warrant suspicion, only empathy as Hank is a man who keeps to himself, says very little, and has no friends. Josie seems very mature for her age and is covered in tattoos, and takes a friendly liking to Hank. As the film moves on, we learn more about this friendship between the two, and how it eventually affects them both.

England's direction and Ragnone II's writing mesh well here. If you're coming to this film because of England's film <I><A HREF="https://letterboxd.com/film/contracted/">Contracted</A></i> (which I absolutely <B>love</B>!), you're going to be presented with something completely different (and that's not a bad thing). It shows that England has the ability to shine through non-horror genres and with different types of casts. The story and dialog are a bit slow, but it makes sense as the film is set in a rural area of America where everyone knows each other's business. It's the ending that really pulls it all together, and which made my jaw drop.

Josie2018

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