In an attempt to return to New York, Claudia makes her mind to have a way back to New York after being exiled. She makes a partnership with a smuggler to return to USA.
Co-directors Dwyer and Kaitlin McLaughlin prove more adept at the first act's low-key character building than the action-movie showdowns they're building toward, but Claudia's use of a makeshift flamethrower late in the game is an unexpected joy.
McLaughlin, for whom this is her first feature-length screenwriting credit, gives her characters incisive dialogue that keeps the human relations front and center. She also knows the value of silence and its ability to convey fear, dread and loneliness.
It's the sort of movie that has a sense of authenticity to it, even if the circumstances themselves are tremendously dramatic. It's a strong, solid debut from Dwyer, and will hopefully serve as a calling card for him and his talented cast.
Despite its promising setup, Hostile Border lacks narrative tension, with the screenplay by co-director Kaitlin McLaughlin never quite coming into dramatic focus.