Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

John Huston once said that a good story should have "excitement, color, spectacle and humor, adventure, high drama, tragedy, good conversation, truth and irony". Although 2007's "Juncture" is missing most of these ingredients it does manage to put most of its tiny budget on the screen in a professional manner and should get high marks for the crew's hard work. But it is one of those sow's ears to silk purse things where you just can't do much with such a weak script (thankfully the writer has had no screen credits since).This low budget action picture is basically a combination of "Death Wish" (1974) and "La Femme Nikita" (1990); with a sterile heroine both homicidal and irritable from a bad headache.Kristine Blackport, in her first and only feature, plays Anna Carter, an executive who has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. With three months to live she decides to check out with a bang by taking out criminals who have abused children and been inadequately punished by the judicial system. That old vigilante justice thing.Blackport looks like Leighton Meester, which probably accounts for a lot of close-ups of her face and eyes. This is a good thing with Meester, because an "actress" is able to use close-ups to nonverbally convey things about her character and to connect with viewers. Unfortunately Blackport's skills are more on the order of Ali Larter (well maybe not quite that bad); with an emotional and sensuality range confined to a look of dull surprise and the occasional blink. A competent "acting for the camera" director could have helped, but James Seale appears to entirely lack that skill set. Like the writer, he too has been on the sidelines since directing this movie. Blackport fares much better on the DVD's behind the scenes featurette, where you begin to suspect that Seale's directing contributions add up to "less than zero".So poor Blackport gamely plods around with little help from the likewise unskilled supporting cast as they cut back and forth between wide master shots and extreme closeups; without managing to create an identifiable point of view or a character with any sort of dimensionality.The DVD release includes a filmmaker's commentary (gag), a behind the scenes featurette (excellent), deleted scenes, trailers, and Spanish subtitles. Given all this extra stuff it is extremely odd that they did not choose to include English subtitles. The audio is a not very good and Blackport's squeaky "Rocky the Flying Squirrel" voice is often inaudible. Maybe this was a way to add some dimensionality to the Anna Carter character, a viewer can mentally replace inaudible elements of lame dialogue with comments from Robert Shiller about the state of the economy.Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

A lot is said these days about the so-called "independent films" and film makers. These are the guys and gals who look forlorn and studious and take their "art" very seriously. Some of us consider anything not made by MGM to be not serious film.This film is a case in point. What separates the mediocre movie from the memorable one is ACTING. Great actors, be they from Hollywood or Hoboken, captivate you and bring you into the world they inhabit on screen. Some independent films have great acting, as do many Hollywood mainstream features. This particular film does not.The lead actress, Kristine Blackport, was simply annoying. Her "little girl" voice and expressionless delivery was inadequate and did not suit the character she plays. Her supporting actors were equally wooden, particularly the earnest,caring boyfriend/psychiatrist and the naive and sugar-sweet best girlfriend.The plot was well worn-the wronged female goes on a revenge spree with her 9mm semi-automatic handgun. All of this carefully planned out without missing a beat at her job. Oh, and she must make sure that the "bad guys" don't leave the earthly realm without knowing why. She makes sure that they hear her case against them with appropriate sneers and tears.A new wrinkle: the killer/protagonist has an inoperable brain tumor and has 3-4 months to live. This, of course, makes everything all right. She's now a murderer for whom we MUST feel sympathy.Unless you're really into revenge/vigilante flicks, I would give this one a pass. How many ways can you do the revenge plot and still keep it interesting and thought provoking?

I saw "Juncture" recently at the Mill Valley Film Festival and I'll start off by saying I left 15 minutes before the end. A few twists, yes, but I found this thriller mind-numbingly repetitive, with less than mediocre performances and dialog. It was impressive visually, and I credit the filmmakers for squeezing the most production value out of a small budget. Unfortunately, it was rife with stereotypes, and there have been movies about female vigilantes before so I can't give it high marks in the originality department. I came to the conclusion after 90 minutes that even the most incredibly shocking twist ending couldn't make up for the hour and a half of dreariness I was subjected to. The lead, Kristine Blackport is a beautiful woman to look at, but her performance was just plain leaden. The earthy girlfriend, the sensitive love interest, the CEO mentor who could have walked out of any number of 80's plots, and the too-easy-to-hate "perps" she knocks off were just sloppy stereotypes plain and simple. Throw in a few clumsy homages, and you have something which might be an amusing diversion on DVD at three in the morning, washed down with cold pizza and beer. I would like to say it might do okay in the Direct-to-DVD market, but I'd still end up hitting the fast forward button.

A dying Protagonist Blackport goes on a an angel of vengeance killing spree meeting out her own kind of justice on those who got away with it.Its been done many times before, but I have to admit this film is well made and carries the storyline very well and the main character is top notch and I must admit, I have never heard of Kristine Blackport, but she has done an excellent job of portraying the warped her heroine of the movie.Also top marks to the writer and director who have in effect made one hell of a good movie.