A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

Amazing worth wacthing. So good. Biased but well made with many good points.

This is a gorgeous movie made by a gorgeous spirit.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

If the action genre has its own version of Tommy Wiseau, it's Kirk Fogg, the writer, director, and star of DISTORTION, as ineptly made a thriller as "The Room" was a drama.The plot: Porter (Fogg) is a homeless, drug-addicted ex-L.A. cop with an inexplicably faithful girlfriend, Rachel (Sarah Lahti). Desperate for money, Rachel agrees to appear in a live Internet porn feed. But something goes wrong. Porter is knocked unconscious and wakes up alone next to some railroad tracks. He obsessively searches for the missing Rachel, harming several people and committing numerous felonies in the process.Fogg created a cast of unpleasant, unlikable, and thoroughly unsympathetic characters. When Porter held a gun to his own head and yammered on about being "The Rifleman," I was wishing he'd pull the trigger so this godawful movie would end. But no such luck. He remains alive to steal the car of a sweet, gentle man who's trying to get him to an AA meeting—never mind that Porter's drug of choice is cocaine— to physically assault and threaten people with information on Rachel's whereabouts, to try manipulating his ex- partner into helping him look for Rachel, and to break into a man's house and force him at gunpoint to take him to where Rachel is being held. (That part confused me as Porter had previously demanded only addresses.) Given all that, you may understand why I felt absolutely no compassion or sympathy for Porter, even at his lowest and most despairing of moments, i.e. nearly every second of the film's 83 minutes.Sarah Lahti is beautiful—too beautiful to convince me that her character is a homeless junkie who does Internet porn. While Porter looks disheveled and acts like the paranoid maniac that his coke habit created, Rachel looks and behaves with relative normalcy. Hell, she even has perfect teeth! Have you ever met a junkie with good dental habits? Meanwhile, the supporting characters bear such clever names as Diner Tough Guy, Waitress, Cook, Security Guard, Doorman, Porn Actor, and Henchman.The film is awash with artsy-fartsy and unnecessary slow-motion flashbacks, not to mention more quick cuts than a week's worth of music videos. And Fogg's idea of dialogue includes this little gem: "Don't give up five minutes before the miracle, man. You know, they say most accidents occur within a five-mile radius of the home. Man, you're almost home! Don't f--- it up now." There's also this bit from a phone conversation: "Hello, I'm looking for Mr. Christopher Jenkins. He represents my interests."DISTORTION's main theme is the thin line between fantasy and reality. Kirk Fogg's fantasy was to make a film that earned him acclaim as a great writer, director, and actor. The reality? His film sucks. The glowing reviews here undoubtedly came from the director's friends and relatives, at his request.

Poor reviews for this style of film show how accustomed people have become to escapist polish of big Hollywood films, where the characters are unremittingly attractive, articulate and witty. "Distortion" is taught, engaging, well-filmed and realistic. Here the characters are confused, contradictory and irrational: in short, absolutely natural and how we act in real life. I've been with the kind of people in portrayed in this film -- living on the ragged fringes of society, lost, aimless, drug damaged, each operating according to a confused and changeable mash of ethics and corruption -- and this film accurately portrays how these people look, think and talk. The cinematography and lighting is particularly interesting being obviously low-budget, rough and stylish all at once. All the characters in this film are convincing. The heroine, played by Sara Lahti, is darling and pragmatically amoral. The hero, played by writer and director Kirk Fogg, is a basically good guy who can hardly function on his own anymore. It's a true romance as our hero is driven to a sort of effectiveness sheerly by love.

. . . according to the DVD box for DISTORTION. I had a root canal this month, so I can honestly say watching this movie is MORE enjoyable than that other experience. Does DISTORTION have anything going for it besides being more pleasurable than a prolonged dental procedure? Not much.Pointers for those wishing to experience DISTORTION: 1)"Gorman" refers to a desert outpost in California shown in occasional flashbacks, NOT a person. 2)If you're tempted to rent this because the box says a chick disappears in the middle of making a porno, forget it. Rachel (played by Sarah Lahti) is snatched fully clothed, and the minimal nudity in this feature is of the incidental-by-extras variety. 3)While this movie's main theme is Pirandelloism--the conflict between illusion and reality--a similar but much better title to check out is an effort directed by and starring Hannibal Lecter himself (Sir Anthony Hopkins), entitled SLIPSTREAM (2007). Even SLIPSTREAM (2005) starring Sean Astin is better than DISTORTION.

DISTORTION, in my opinion, is an excellent, nail-biting, spellbinding thriller which will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish in spite of what some people may say. Every time I see this movie, I want to watch it even more. If you ask me, Porter (Kirk Fogg) was a really tough guy during his investigative search for Rachel (Sara Lahti). I laughed really hard when he looked into the surveillance camera at the police station and said, "Oh, yeah! I know!" That is one scene I play in my head over and over again every day. Also, whenever Porter and Rachel showed a sign of affection, I got really warm and tingly. Before I wrap this up, I'd like to say that everyone involved did an outstanding job. In conclusion, if you liked Kirk Fogg on "LEGENDS OF THE HIDDEN TEMPLE," you'll really like him in this excellent, nail-biting, spellbinding thriller which will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.