The Intended

Period melodrama set in steamy 1920s Indochina. Ambitious young surveyor (Feild) heads upriver with his older fiancee (McTeer) in hopes of starting a new life at a colonial trading post. Of course, all is not right when they arrive. They find the post run by scary militant widow Fricker, surrounded by a freakshow of family and hangers-on. Her son, a disgustingly oily slacker (Maudsley), is angry when mommy decides to pass control over to a nephew instead of him and starts scheming. While Maudsley's unhinged nanny (Dukakis) creepily fawns over him, he casts a greedy eye towards McTeer. Wonderfully twisted over-the-top horror show reminds at times of Old Dark House thrillers of the '30s, minus the knowing, tongue-in-cheek humor. Takes itself way too seriously, but it's good fun for fans of unintentional camp.