Meskada (2010)

Cast: Nick Stahl, Rachel Nichols, Kellan Lutz, Jonathan Tucker, Grace Gummer

Director: Josh Sternfeld

Rating: R

Running Time: 89 min.

Synopsis: Class and economics muddy the investigation of a homicide in this thriller from director Josh Sternfeld. When a child is found murdered in the small town of Hilliard, police detective Noah Cordin (Nick Stahl) is assigned to investigate the case. The victim's mother, Allison Connor (Laura Benanti), is a wealthy and well-connected member of the County Board of Commissioners, so Cordin is under pressure to find the killer as soon as possible, but working with rookie officer Leslie Spencer (Rachel Nichols), he isn't finding many substantial clues. One of the few pieces of evidence suggests the culprit may have been from the nearby town of Caswell. Cordin was born and raised in Caswell and knows its history well -- while Hilliard is a prosperous suburban community, Caswell is a working-class town fallen on hard times, and its survival is dependent on a proposed factory coming into town. As Cordin spends more and more time in Caswell, he becomes a target for the resentment the locals feel toward their wealthier neighbors, and a tense situation becomes potentially explosive when word begins to circulate that Connor may use her influence to keep the new employer out of Caswell unless someone comes forward to identity who killed her son. Meskada (named for the county that contains both Hilliard and Caswell) also stars Norman Reedus, Kellan Lutz, Jonathan Tucker, and Grace Gummer.

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