A strange set of coincidences sets off a chain of murder and intrigue in director Joshua Brandon’s thriller, Black Bags. Tess (Olesya Rulin) is a soon-to-be mother who traveled far to see a specialist to help her with her very complicated pregnancy. With the help of her father’s influence, Tess was placed on a medical trial for an experimental medication that would help bring her baby to term.
On the bus, Tess meets Sara (Laura Vandervoort), who comes off as a bit aggressive, but maybe that’s just her personality. After a long and awkward ride, Tess grabs her black bag, says goodbye to Sara, and heads home. Needing to take her medication, she opens her suitcase only to find a severed head in a plastic bag. Tess quickly realizes that she took the other woman’s suitcase by mistake, and before you know it, Sara is knocking at the door.
Just like that, we have a thriller on our hands. Black Bags quickly turns into an intense psychological game of cat and mouse. Tess becomes a victim of mistaken suitcases, and before she knows it, the aggressive, controlling Sara bullies Tess to help dispose of the head. With every step, Sara assumes more and more power over her unwitting accomplice.
The fun of this two-handed thriller comes in realizing the mystery that is unraveling from start to finish. It’s not hard to figure out that Tess and Sara’s meeting was not random, as Sara has been targeting Tess. The question is, why? What writers Angela Bourassa and Adam Pachter do so well is reveal a small part of the mystery and let it play out. Then they unveil another juicy bit of intrigue and start the process all over again.
“…the aggressive, controlling Sara bullies Tess to help dispose of the head.”
Of course, Black Bags doesn’t work without the strong performances of Rulin and Vandervoort. Rulin projects an inner strength. Tess is not necessarily “weak,” but she is months pregnant and exhausted from a long bus ride. The actor handles the tense moments believably. Likewise, Vandervoot’s calculated and measured portrayal turns Sara into quite the imposing figure.
What sets Black Bags apart from your typical two-person thriller is that it balances the wealth of expository dialogue with action — not just physical activity, but the psychological game of chess between the leads. In other words, there’s just as much doing as talking. Moments of empathy are more than just trying to gain sympathy for Tess’ personal life or Sara’s past. Sara knows more about Tess than she’s letting on, and the ultimate demise of Tess was meticulously planned. The plotting is strong.
I am wrestling a bit with the ending. No spoilers, but if it were me, I don’t know that I would’ve concluded things that way. Is it because I’m an unfeeling dude? I don’t know, but I’ll leave it at that.
Low-budget features are tough sells because it always takes money that independent filmmakers don’t have at their disposal to create tension. Sure, this film might be a million times better with tens of millions of dollars backing it. But Black Bags works because of a strong script written for its two solid actors, which is more than I can say for the Big Hollywood films of late.
