Suspicious River (2000)

29% of critics liked it
(7 reviews)
31% of users liked it
(195 ratings)

In this disturbing psychological drama, Molly Parker plays Leila, a receptionist at a rundown hotel who pads her paycheck by turning tricks with the hotel's customers. When she meets Gary (Callum Keith Rennie), a brutish psycho, Leila endures his physical abuse with troubling insouciance,… More In this disturbing psychological drama, Molly Parker plays Leila, a receptionist at a rundown hotel who pads her paycheck by turning tricks with the hotel's customers. When she meets Gary (Callum Keith Rennie), a brutish psycho, Leila endures his physical abuse with troubling insouciance, preferring his rough treatment to the passionless marriage waiting for her at home. Some clues to her demeanor are given in a parallel story, in which a young girl plays powerless witness to her mother's sexual encounter with the girl's violent uncle. ~ Rebecca Flint Marx, Rovi

Directed By: Lynne Stopkewich
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Sep 5, 2000 Wide
Studio: Motion International

Critic Reviews

Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Edging more towards softcore porn than art.
D.K. Holm, Movie Poop Shoot
It's all kind of obvious, but also terribly slow paced.
Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com
You'll have trouble tracking down a more unwatchable movie this year
Jon Popick, Planet Sick-Boy
Another uniquely dazzling performance from Parker, in another unnerving tale from Stopkewich.

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Featured Audience Ratings

Walter M

At a roadside motel, Leila Murray(Molly Parker), a hotel receptionist, provides sexual services for guests, stashing the money in her shoe before she begins. While all of this is going on, her husband Rick(Joel Bissonnette) remains home unemployed and quite blissfully unaware. And… More
At a roadside motel, Leila Murray(Molly Parker), a hotel receptionist, provides sexual services for guests, stashing the money in her shoe before she begins. While all of this is going on, her husband Rick(Joel Bissonnette) remains home unemployed and quite blissfully unaware. And all goes well until Gary Jensen(Callum Keith Rennie) punches her before forcing her to the floor. Afterwords, he apologizes for his rough actions. For the record, Leila's only friend seems to be the little girl(Mary Kate Welsh) down the lane who she talks with when sitting on a dock at the river while enjoying a cigarette. With Molly Parker's luminating and captivating presence raising it above the purely mundane, "Suspicious River" otherwise is not that different from many other cautionary tales, with its good(pregnant) girl/bad girl dichotomy amongst the motel receptionists.(In fact, "Stargate SG1" fans might find this movie the most disturbing.) As much as the movie aims for a psychosexual reading, I think it comes down to money more than anything else for Leila who is trapped by inaction. Otherwise, there is an 11th hour plot twist that while sort of making sense and tying everything together, is also something of a cheat.

Suspicious River (2000)

Critic Reviews

Featured Audience Ratings

Walter M

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