This darkly compelling thriller charts the course of a malevolent, charismatic stranger who insinuates himself into an already troubled family. His increasingly paranoid and dangerous behaviour forces them to fight for their lives and ultimately rediscover their love for one another.

We first meet OCTOBER 'TOBE' SOMMERS as she and her younger brother LONNIE are walking on a pedestrian bridge over a freeway. Lonnie picks up a bolt and holds it over the freeway. Tobe tries to grab the bolt from him and it falls onto the windshield of a passing car, forcing it off the road. Tobe and Lonnie run home, afraid of getting caught. When their father WADE comes home, he tells Tobe she needs to feed Lonnie dinner, because he's going out with his girlfriend. Later that night, Tobe sneaks out to meet her friends. While Lonnie is alone in the house, he imagines seeing someone lurking outside the house.

The next morning, Tobe goes to the beach with her friends and stops at a gas station on the way, where she meets HARLAN. Like every teenage girl, Tobe is a little too strong-willed and mischievous for her own good. Which is why, from the moment she sees Harlan, she has to have him. A soft-spoken enigma, Harlan walks out on his beach with her. They waste no time falling in love and Tobe spends the night with him at his motel.

While Tobe is with Harlan, we see Wade at home, cleaning one of his antique guns. Lonnie is curious about the gun, but Wade tells him he must never touch the guns. They talk about Tobe and Wade says that he loves her even though they fight sometimes.

The next day, Tobe brings Harlan home and introduces him to Lonnie, who likes him instantly. Then Wade comes home and Harlan introduces himself. Harlan very formally asks Wade's permission to take Tobe out to dinner, which Wade finds strange.

The next day, Harlan takes Tobe to his friend Charlie's corral to ride horses. As they are riding away, Charlie comes running out of the house, but Harlan just waves at him and they ride off. Harlan tells Tobe that he wants to marry her. Tobe laughs and tells him she's not ready.

Harlan takes Tobe to a burned-out house that serves as his hideout. Later that day, they ride back to the corral and Charlie points a rifle at them and orders them to get off the horses. Harlan is friendly with Charlie, but Charlie treats Harlan like a stranger and tells Tobe his name is not Charlie. The police show up and Charlie tells them Harlan stole his horse. Harlan tells the police that Charlie has mental problems and periodically forgets that he knows Harlan. The police handcuff Tobe and Harlan, but then Wade arrives and convinces Charlie not to press charges.

When they get home, Wade drags Tobe into her room and tells her he will hurt Harlan if he ever catches Tobe with him again. That night, Tobe sneaks out to meet Harlan. She promises that she will keep seeing him. The next day in his motel, Harlan plays out a scene in which he draws his gun and fires several times. The last shot actually had a real bullet in it and it shatters the mirror on the door. Harlan hides when neighbors come to investigate.

Then, Harlan goes to Tobe's house, but Lonnie tells him Tobe isn't home. To get Harlan to stay, Lonnie shows him Wade's gun collection. Harlan offers to teach Lonnie to shoot, so they go into the woods and shoot at a collection of old bottles. When they get home, Wade confronts Harlan and tells him that he doesn't want him around his family. Harlan tries to apologize, but Wade insults him. Lonnie defends Harlan. Wade gets his gun and points it at Harlan until he leaves.

When Tobe gets home, she yells at Wade for pulling a gun on Harlan. They argue and Wade slaps her. When they finally stop fighting, Tobe tells Wade that she loves Harlan. That night, she sneaks out and meets Harlan at a donut shop. Harlan tells her that they should run away together, but Tobe asks Harlan to back off a little but until she can straighten things out with Wade.

Harlan leaves town on a bus and goes to a Jewish temple looking for someone named JOE LASSEN. Meanwhile, Lonnie discovers that Wade left his gun out and plays with it. Back at the temple, Harlan gets thrown out for disrupting the service. Then he breaks into a nearby house and finds a box of childhood mementos labeled 'MARTY'. He steals everything of value and leaves a letter addressed to Joe, which he has signed as Joe's son.

Harlan sells the valuables and goes to Tobe's house, but no one is home. He sneaks in through the back door and takes Wade's gun. In Tobe's room, Harlan finds a suitcase, packs it with her clothes and waits for her to come home. When she gets home, Harlan tells her that they are going to run away, but she tells him she doesn't want to. Without thinking, Harlan pulls out the gun and shoots Tobe in the stomach. Tobe collapses, so Harlan puts her on Wade's bed and runs away.

Wade comes home, finds Tobe and rushes her to the hospital. Lonnie gets home and sees a puddle of blood in Wade's room, as well as the gun and Tobe's suitcase. Meanwhile, Harlan crawls to some bushes near a freeway, takes a gun and shoots his own leg. At the hospital, Wade tells DETECTIVE SHERIDAN his theory that Harlan was involved. Sheridan informs him that Lonnie's fingerprints were on the gun. Wade comes home and confronts Lonnie about playing with the gun. Lonnie confesses that he played with it, but insists that he did not shoot Tobe. Wade assures Lonnie that he believes him

That night, Harlan sneaks up to Lonnie's window and tells him that Wade shot Tobe and him when Wade found out that they were going to run away together. Harlan convinces Lonnie to run away with him by telling him that Wade will go to jail for shooting Tobe, and Lonnie will end up in foster care. Harlan reveals that he has lived with several foster families and that it is not a good thing. They get on a bus and Lonnie tells Harlan that he hates Wade. Back at the house, Wade comes come and finds that Lonnie is missing. Meanwhile, Harlan takes Lonnie to the burned-out house and teaches him to ride one of Charlie's horses. At the hospital, Steve tells Wade that Tobe mentioned having ridden out to a place in the hills with Harlan, and convinces Wade to go look for Lonnie there.

Steve and Wade go to Charlie's stables first, and he tells them his horse is missing, but he didn't see Harlan take it. Charlie gives them each a horse so that they can all look for Harlan. that night, Charlie, Steve and Wade wide up to the burned out house and try to shoot Harlan. Steve is shot as he tries to save Lonnie. Harlan and Lonnie escape.

The next morning, Sheridan finds Wade at the burned-out house and shows him a photo of Harlan that identifies him as 'Marty'. Back at the hospital, Tobe awakens and realizes that Lonnie is missing. Harlan and Lonnie ride until they reach a ranch in the Santa Clarita Valley. JEAN comes out to greet them. Jean and her husband BILL run a foster care home. Lonnie thinks he hears Jean call Harlan by the name Martin, but he isn't sure. Later, Harlan tells Jean that Lonnie is the son of Tobe, a woman he is planning to marry. Jean takes Lonnie aside and Lonnie tells her that Tobe is his sister, not his mother.

At the hospital, Tobe forces Wade to face the fact that he has never loved Lonnie because he is the product of his wife's affair. Wade apologizes to Tobe for his failures as a father. At the ranch, Jean waits until after dinner to confront Harlan about Lonnie. Harlan tells Jean that everyone lied to Lonnie because Tobe was so young when she had him. In the kitchen, Bill tells Jean that the people looking for Lonnie are on their way. Harlan hears them approaching and gets Lonnie. As Wade and Sheridan head towards the home, Wade holds a mug shot identifying Harlan as Martin Lassen. Jean and Bill try to stop Harlan from leaving with Lonnie, but Harlan ignores them.

When Wade arrives, Bill and Jean try to explain things to him. That night, Harlan and Lonnie come upon an old western town. Lonnie and Harlan get a hotel room. When they wake up the next morning, a large party is going on and people are dancing in the town square. Harlan joins the dancing while Lonnie stays in the room. Suddenly, Lonnie sees cameras and realizes that it is a movie set. Wade and Sheridan arrive, but Lonnie sees them and warns Harlan. Harlan tells Lonnie to get the horse and fires his gun in the air. Wade tells Lonnie that Harlan is actually the person who shot Tobe, but Harlan denies it. There is a shootout and Sheridan and Harlan are hit. Lonnie brings Harlan a horse and they ride off together, even though Wade tries to stop them.

Harlan and Lonnie ride through an empty stretch of land where houses are being built, and hide in an empty house. Wade and Sheridan find them and Wade shoots Harlan. Lonnie holds Harlan as he dies. A few days later, Wade drives Tobe and Lonnie to the top of a hill overlooking a valley. Tobe and Lonnie bring a box that contains Harlan's ashes, which they scatter to the wind and say a prayer.

Cannes Press Book

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