Reality is filled with an abundance of dark situations that can happen to any of us. The history of cinema has shown that a well-made film can convey such distress with great effectiveness, portraying a good narrative while still touching our emotions. Written and directed by Pippa Bianco, Share is an outstanding movie that takes us on the powerful journey of a young girl who believes she may have been raped.

Waking up after a night that she cannot remember, with a disturbing video shared across the local community, the story follows a teenager that must suffer the pain of discovering what occurred. Rhianne Barreto plays our main character, Mandy. She is supported by Poorna Jagannathan and J. C. MacKenzie as her mother and father respectively, with Lovie Simone, Nicholas Galitzine and Charlie Plummer playing classmates that feel the constant ripples of the actions made.

This is a dark tale indeed. In fact, a trigger warning must be made for those vulnerable to depictions of sexual assault, not because of anything graphic, but rather for how the movie shows the aftermath of an individual that must deal with everything that follows. The protagonist does not know what happened, and therefore is forced into living a life of constant suffering, as everyone around her reacts to its impact. With this in mind, the film does a perfect job of displaying these events with absolute respect, while still being conscious that it needs to be a well-made picture.

Simple in its set up and deliberate in its pace, the movie takes us through the days and weeks which ensue the tragic night touched upon earlier. As we travel down this path, our lead actress delivers a fantastic performance that shows the numbness of her world. The actors supporting her are superb too, allowing us to see how the friends and family of victims are hurt in different ways. At just 90 minutes in length, the narrative covers a lot of ground, wasting no time from start to finish, as it gives dedicated attention to the contents within.

The script that the film is built on is tight and purposeful. As mentioned above, practically every line serves a function for the story, allowing for no fat to be left on the bone. The writer/director Pippa Bianco must be commended completely, as she has not only written a deeply emotional movie but has done a great job at directing one too. Making use of a budget that is likely small, the filmmaking focuses on the characters and their psychology, letting the limited sets work well. These locations are lit with frequent neon, illuminating the darkness that covers the surroundings. Because of this, Ava Berkofsky must also be congratulated for her beautiful work in cinematography.

Made by HBO and distributed on their platform, Share is a movie that deserves to be seen by a wide audience. The basic nature of its production has allowed for the story to reign supreme, bringing us a well-told experience, guaranteed to stay with you for a long time after. Efficient and emotional, this is not a film that should be missed.