John and Laura are a rich black couple who have it all - except a baby. They have suffered several miscarriages and are on the lookout for a surrogate. They receive a video from Anna who seems too good to be true - and of course she is.
The couple invite Anna over with her boyfriend, Juice out of ‘Sons of Anarchy, and they like her but dislike him. We know he’s a controlling asshole, who's only in it for the money. Our couple are desperate however, and are down to their last viable embryo, so they go ahead with the surrogacy.
Things start to look somewhat dubious when Anna gets beaten up by Juice and then shows up at John’s office after sending him sexy videos. She moves in and lawyer John warns Juice off, safe in the knowledge that he is due to be deployed in the Middle east and out of their hair.
John was however discharged and Anna is still seeing him and listening to his plans of fleecing our couple for as much as possible. We get a wrong foot however, when Juice checks out and Anna goes full on psycho. She has fallen for John and wants him for herself. John isn’t so keen but is mindful that Anna is carrying their baby.
Will the baby be born and who will take custody? Is Anna full on mental or just a bit hormonal?
I didn’t mind this film too much despite not having an interest in any of the themes. It was less good than similar BBC drama ‘The Nest’ but followed the same lines. Indeed, I would be surprised if ‘The Nest’ writer hadn’t researched this film before coming up with their plot.
The two principals were good as the desperate couple, although the wife was that annoying in that strong and always right way. Morris Chestnut as John was better and you could almost hear his inner turmoil as the young surrogate tried to seduce him. Less good was Omar off ‘The Wire’ who phoned in a performance as John’s fixer.
The initial villain Juice was terrible and a real pantomime bad guy, complete with ominous musical cues every time he appeared. It was a neat twist to have him exit stage left after an hour and leave Anna with all the psycho duties. I didn’t really buy her as the girl from the wrong side of the tracks, but she looked very nice in her skimpies so we’ll let that pass.
The conclusion was a bit extreme and I’d be surprised if adoption is granted in such circumstances! The film was however well made, with good pacing and enough to keep me engaged throughout.
Best Bit : Midnight swim - 'W' Rating 16/23
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