Plot
At the lowest point of his life, Richie gets a call from his estranged sister, asking him to look after his eleven-year old niece, Sophia, for a few hours.
Storyline
A troubled young man and his straight-laced niece embark on a thrilling odyssey through New York City in this heartrending drama based on an Oscar-winning short. As his life hits rock bottom, 20-something Richie decides to end it all, only to have his half-hearted suicide attempt interrupted by an urgent request from his sister to babysit her precocious daughter. So begins a madcap tour of Manhattan after dark, as uncle and niece find unexpected bonds in the unlikeliest of places.
Cast: Ron Perlman -
Bill
Emmy Rossum -
Maggie
Paul Wesley -
Gideon
Richard Schiff -
Bruce
Fatima Ptacek -
Sophia
Stephanie Kurtzuba -
Blonde woman
Shawn Christensen -
Richie
Victor Cruz -
Terry the Doorman
(rumored)
Isabelle McNally -
Vista
Joseph Perrino -
Ellis
Stefano Villabona -
Passed Out Mask Party Guy
J. Elaine Marcos -
Annoying Woman
Hani Avital -
Dead Girl
Sean Ringgold -
Devon
James Chen -
Chinese Man
Filming Locations: Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia:
Based on the 2012 Academy Award winning short film, 'Curfew', also written and directed by Shawn Christensen See more »
User Review
Author:
Rating: 8/10
Another fascinating movie from SXSW I got to screen was Before I
Disappear, one I wasn't sure I would enjoy but walked out of the room
with a few tears streaming down my face, which never happens to me in
cinema. Shawn Christensen's direction in this film was positively
extraordinary.
From the get go we see our main character Richie surrounded by poor
life decisions that keep dragging him further and further down the
rabbit hole; unable to crawl out of his own personal horrors and
drowning in mournful regret, he decides he's going to end it. That is
until he gets the phone call that changes the tone of the movie
completely.
A frantic phone call from his estranged sister has him picking up his
niece from school and he had no idea why. He goes on an evening of half
hallucinated, half sedated, adventures trying to juggle one bad
situation while struggling with another. A battle between two bosses,
both with whom he feels he owes loyalty; one begging for silence, the
other for answers and neither an uncomplicated choice. All the while,
he has an 11 year old girl, who is clearly raised to be prim and
proper, completely oblivious to the underworld he's trolled, in tow
witnessing his digression.
Paul Wesley unquestionably stepped out of his comfort zone and brightly
shined in the spotlight as the young club owner and boss in this film.
Although both he and Ron Pearlman had minimal roles, it was definitely
memorable as you felt the hectic panic in his drugged state and
actually sympathized with his situation.
This movie brings the uncomfortable truth to the surface, what it's
like to battle with drug addiction, how it feels to suffer with loss
and how some people cope with the choices... on the other side of the
coin, how the family members tend to deal with these loved ones. I feel
this movie did for drug addiction what Silver Linings Playbook did for
people coping with being bipolar. It's ugly, it's messy but there are
answers.... there is hope. .
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