"ROUNDING" // TRIBECA 2022
ROUNDING, a new horror/thriller film from the director of Saint Frances, is not your typical horror film. It's squarely right in the middle of the world of the spooky and the horrors of the everyday doctor. Namir Smallwood plays James, a medical resident who's in residency at a local hospital. He's a hard working (perhaps too hard working) resident who wants to be the best he can be while making sure he is "good." However when we first meet him, he is dealt quite a blow as he suffers a mental breakdown related to his close relationship with a patient. Now at a quieter hospital, he's trying to put all the pieces back together and take one step at a time. His new supervisor, Dr. Harrison (Michael Potts) is a stoic but supportive guide and he thinks he'll have a great future here.
Yet he seems to see something that others aren't seeing. A 19-year-old patient named Helen (Sidney Flanigan) had a severe asthma attack, but something seems off for James. Her symptoms don't seem quite right. Her mother (Rebecca Spence) doesn't gel with James and that off-puts James even more as his concerns grown into an obsession, an obsession to discover what is actually happening to this young girl. James' world starts spinning out of control as he becomes so fixated on one patient yet again but can't bring himself to stop. Alex Thompson directs the film with all the eeriness of a horror film and all the dread of a thriller, pushing Rounding right in-between the two genres. Is James losing it or seeing something no one else can see? Are all the horrors of everyday life in a hospital just too much, or can other start to see what he sees? It's all anchored by a masterful performance by Namir Smallwood and an assured supporting turn by the always reliable Michael Potts. Smallwood is fascinating to watch unravel and you truly don't know which side you believe he may be on. It's a shadowy, strange and thrilling ride and another winner from Alex Thompson.
GRADE: B+
WRITTEN BY Alex Thompson, Christopher Thompson DIRECTED BY Alex Thompson STARRING Namir Smallwood, Sidney Flanigan, Michael Potts, Max Lipchitz, David Cromer, Cheryl Lynn Bruce, Rebecca Spence SELECTED AS PART OF THE 2022 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL. FOR MORE INFO: ROUNDING