Directed by Chad Faust
Starring: Lena Heady, Hamza Haq, Amybeth McNulty, Amanda Brugel, Enrico Colantoni, Jordan Kronis
Nance (Headey) is a munitions factory worker in a small Ohio factory town. As a proud working-class mom of military son Jesse (Kronis), things start to unravel when he is killed on a mission abroad by a bullet manufactured where she works. In her grief, she abandons her pregnant daughter-in-law, Diana (McNulty), and starts to become radicalized, with ideations of violence and revenge. While at a military support group, she meets Kahlil (Haq), a U.S. military agent from Afghanistan, and he tries to help her navigate through the turmoil. But Nance may have become unreachable and headed to a dark, unforgivable path.
Ballistic is the 2nd full feature from writer/actor/auteur Chad Faust, who is finding his niche in the thriller genre after debuting with 2020’s Girl. In the Hitchcock tradition, he again makes a cameo in a screen-stealing role as SSG Buchanan, the recruiter who enlisted her son.
An indie film by most standards, Faust shows some emotional directorial muscle by putting together a fine, respectable cast in Headey, Haq, and McNulty. Minimal and effective, Ballistic’s simplicity leaves room for the performances to breathe, even at short turns. The film’s visual tone (shot by Kristofer Bonnel and edited by Mariana Urrutia) also captures the bleakness of Nance’s psychological state.
Heady’s had a long, established career since the early 90s. I still love her from 2008’s Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. It’s no big surprise that she tackles this role with steady focus and flashes of quiet intensity. McNulty is excellent as the needy Diana trying to pull Nance back into reality, and Haq equally so.
While not a perfect film, Faust’s handling of the story, along with Headey’s and the company’s fine performances, makes Ballistic a worthy watch. The film’s premise did not seem promising at first glance, but its execution lends a commendable sense of realism. Ballistic may be a small, simple indie feature, but Headey is unsurprisingly good in a bigger way. That alone should be good enough for some cynical Game of Thrones fans.
Have you seen BALLISTIC? Well, what do you think?
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