The Shattering

A look into the life of a deeply troubled woman.

Claire (Harba) lives in a luxurious house. After a traumatic incident, she has gone downhill, never leaves her home and has become a very difficult person to communicate with. Her state is taking its toll on her husband Eric (Cole) and her psychiatrist Monica (Beckett) is trying hard to help her. As time goes by, Claire appears to be further losing her grip with reality and struggling to maintain her sanity.

This dark story begins as a drama and gradually turns into a psychological thriller. A large part of the narrative takes place over the course of an hour, during early morning. Throughout this part, Claire wakes up, while Eric remains in bed. She tends to her baby, repeatedly phones her mother and proceeds to suspect that her partner might be having an affair. The morning sequence frequently cuts to flashbacks that reveal stages of her mental condition, the unstable relationship between her and Eric since the life-changing event took place and therapy meetings she had with Monica. Every time the flashbacks cut back to present day, the time is shown.

Harba delivers an outstanding performance as a person who seems to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and is living in her own world as a result of the tragedy. She has chosen to live in a world in which the terrible incident did not take place and she can be happy. Cole is great in his role as the caring husband, who is making desperate efforts to leave the sad experience behind, help his wife get over it and move on. Beckett is convincing as the calm psychiatrist attempting to assist Claire to accept reality.

With the exception of the beginning, the entire narrative takes place inside the couple's house. The main focus is Claire's eccentric and disturbing behaviour and Monica and Eric's repeated attempts to aid her. There are moments of drama and tenderness and scenes that are rather heartbreaking.

Composer Michael Wyckoff makes a significant contribution. The score consists mainly of piano music, which is either tender and gentle or melancholic and accompanied by the images, it effectively creates the right atmosphere.

This feature deserves a great deal of commendation. The acting is great, the characters are interesting and the plot will most likely keep the viewer intrigued.