States of Control

Music video cinematographer Zack Winestine made his debut as a writer and director with this deeply psychological drama about an angst-ridden New York City woman, Lisa (Jennifer Van Dyck), who embarks on a quest to achieve an authenticity that her complacent existence lacks. An office manager for an underground Manhattan theater, Lisa feels that her life and her marriage to an impotent professor, Abel (Stephen Bogardus), are going nowhere fast. After she decides not to sleep anymore, Lisa embarks on a series of choices that seem ill-advised and impulsive, including an affair with a bitter, cynical stage director, Paul (John Cunningham), who preaches a neo-fascist philosophy. Lisa also takes an interest in the seamy world of pornography, which her actress friend Carol (Ellen Greene) knows all too much about -- but Lisa's nerve fails her in her effort to mimic Carol's sexual liberation. A fresh start on the West Coast with her husband fails to assuage the inner torment of the increasingly militant and violent Lisa. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide