Critic's Grade: B+

Director, Producer, and Star Garth Donovan with his only second feature film documents a family that is on the fringe of self-destruction. Fences and Fingernails takes a fast and turbulent ride with a family and their inner circle of troubles and woes.

The story begins in a hockey rink during a rough and high impact game with a young female player who's on the breaking point. After the game the no nonsense coach pulls her to the side and gives his star player the third degree. He wants the young and aggressive player to develop her excellent skills but her attitude falls short and it is running on her coach's last nerve. The film takes the audience into her world filled with deception, aggressiveness, and certainly walking on the bladed edge that she is bound to fall from but to never really recover. The depiction of her-own life is dwindling down right into the harness of disaster. She begins to discover that she needs to think about what is there ahead of her to have any future. Her Coach makes it clear that if she wants to continue Hockey it's a must to get her head into the game. This is the point where her everyday life takes a downward spiral.

It never seems to change no matter where she goes her self-hatred and the impression that everyone doesn't know what she truly needs? Fences and Fingernails takes you into the wild side of her life it's at times simply disturbing. Visually, impressive but it takes a very honest reality check one that most people can relate too. In the days ahead her family discovers that she is pregnant and desperately needs to think about an uncertain future. Being the constant social butterfly she makes her way to social gatherings to see if there is a chance to meet someone of interest. But even that falls short when he makes the final decision to head to California to start a new career.

Fences and Fingernails won't let you down because it takes the time to examine the harsh reality at home as well. The constant confrontations between parents and herself-which at times become explosive. One of the most interesting scenes in the film is she makes the attempt to escape in her mothers car but has to return anyway. She gets caught at a local parking lot by a police officer that tells her to go home after sitting there for hours. It's a return she hesitates on but needs to with nowhere to go unless she pulls herself and her demons into logical focus.

Garth Donovan who plays the wasted drunk brother who's future is also no better than his sisters. He also creates a burden on the already self-destructive end of one family's uncontrollable rage. It's a film about two people who come from the same household but as yet unable to find success. Donovan makes a triumphant return to the big screen after his magnificent debut film with Everyone's Got One.

If you get to see a screening of Fences and Fingernails at the local cinema get yourself ready for an unbelievable ride.

Dan's Review *** star(s)

All Reviews by Dan Berman
If you are the author of this review, you may edit it by signing in.