one night a young woman named Iris unable to sleep heads to the kitchen takes a pocket knife gets into her car and drives away from home she travels a long way along a Forest Road occasionally glancing at a toy boat she brought with her finally she arrives at a secluded Park and reaches a Cliffside Iris climbs one of the cliffs and approaches a small memorial set up in memory of a child who died at this place she weeps over his photograph and then walks toward the edge of the cliff it becomes clear that Iris has
decided to end her life and is summoning the courage to take a step into the void suddenly a man appears nearby sits down close and introduces himself as Richard he starts asking her about the tragedy explaining that he came here to be alone and wants her to listen to him Richard tells her that he had a car and a beloved girlfriend Khloe but one day he crashed the car smashing it into a brick wall the worst part was that they had argued just before Khloe died involuntarily Iris starts listening to him and even offers words
of sympathy to which Richard only scowls saying everyone around him said the same thing after the accident he was paralyzed for almost 3 months living with the help of machines and all his visitors irritated him with their sympathy after hearing him out Iris suddenly shares that her husband had carved their names into a tree while their son was searching for sticks to roast marshmallows meanwhile she was gathering flowers and didn't see their son fall from a height now she doesn't understand how to live anymore it's as if she's broken Richard suddenly says that being broken
doesn't mean being hopeless and he stands up preparing to leave unexpectedly Iris realizes she no longer wants to jump and follows him down the trail toward the cars they had left at the parks entrance but when she tries to get into her own car it turns out that Richard has parked Too Close blocking her in only then as if realizing it himself he walks around her car and suddenly knocks her out with a stun gun she regains Consciousness Bound in the back seat of Richard's car Panic overtakes her and upon hearing her Quicken breathing Richard
realizes she's awake Iris attempts to call for help using her watch but he informs her that there's no signal in this remote area she has no hope of her husband finding her quickly either Richard mocks her attempts to persuade him to release her placing her son's toy boat taken from her car in front of her this reminds Iris of her pocket knife she cautiously pulls it from her back pocket opens it and begins to cut her bonds to keep Richard from hearing she starts a conversation about his family but he shifts the topic to her
deceased son forcing her to continue talking how however Richard doesn't fall for her tricks stating his intention to take her to his Cabin in the Woods where he plans to braid her hair but as she frees herself Iris crushes these dreams with a stab the blow only grazes him and uninjured Richard loses control of the car crashing it into a tree and hitting his head he tries to restrain Iris but she fights back desperately eventually they both spill out of the car on opposite sides Iris cuts the ropes on her feet jumps up and tries
to find help but the road is deserted Richard also stands up lamenting that she spoiled such a perfect opportunity everything was going according to plan solitude no witnesses an empty road but he foolishly didn't check her pockets for which he's now paying the price oddly he remarks that she wanted to end her life anyway and by the way she should already be feeling the first symptoms with these words Richard shows her an empty syringe he explains he took precautions and injected her with something that will soon make it impossible for her to move or speak
her body will no longer serve her giving him complete control in 20 minutes she'll lose fine motor control in her hands then she won't be able to hold a knife or walk so she might as well go with him Richard invitingly extends his hand but Iris runs into the forest she loses her knife but still manages to run though her fingers are becoming less responsive she checks her watch to track time recalls counting exercises with her son and realizes her dexterity is deteriorating Richard's voice calls out as he catches up to her Iris keeps running
but her body grows increasing numb eventually she realizes she'll soon be unable to move she crawls along a streamed and finds a hollow under tree roots hiding inside just then she hears Richard's voice tauntingly calling for her as he searches when it seems he's lost her Iris realizes she's lying on an anill insects crawl onto her face and she can't bear it rolling out of the hollow Richard hears her cry and returns to the stream but she scrambles toward the water and throws herself into the river which sweeps her away Richard sees this and yells
that she won't be able to swim but she somehow stays afloat eventually making it to shore where her body fully loses movement she lies in a meadow realizing she can no longer do anything suddenly she spots a structure nearby soon an older but sturdy man approaches her on a lawn mower he examines her realizes her eyes are alert and immediately understands that she can communicate by blinking once for yes twice for no Iris signals that she isn't injured but needs help the man heads off to fetch a wheelbarrow and lying on the grass Iris suddenly
notices the beauty around her the Sun the clear sky with the fading trail of an airplane The Greenery in the peace when he returns the man moves her to his cabin to call for help but he doesn't get the chance as someone knocks on the door the old man turns to the entrance noticing Iris blinking frantically he opens the door to find Richard outside looking desperate and begging for help finding his wife who he says was injured in an accident the man asked him to wait outside intending to fetch the phone but Richard entered despite
his pleas Richard complains of feeling unwell and asks to sit on the couch but he also scans the room noticing the wheelbarrow but not finding Iris the old man asks him once again to leave and wait outside promising assistance but on his terms Richard claims he lost his phone in the accident so the man offers to bring his phone outside for him he plans to inform The Rescuers that someone has broken into his house at this Richard breaks down and the man feeling pity asks what truly happened Richard claims his wife is mentally ill that
he protects her as best he can and fears she'll be institutionalized if the police find her this time he says he loves her dearly and blames himself for allowing her to drive which she wanted so badly however he supposedly lost his temper over one of her Maneuvers causing her to lose control and crash he fainted and when he regained Consciousness she was gone he fears she might go catatonic and be unable to move or speak as Richard talks about his love the man glances at Iris lying under the couch un sure who's truly in danger
seeing Richard's desperate expression the man recalls his own wife who often fussed over his health at the expense of her own ultimately ignoring her own symptoms and leaving him alone he decides to tell the truth even admitting he hasn't been entirely honest but then Richard's phone rings revealing his deceit the man once again demands he leave dropping his pretense Richard asks why the man's wheelbarrow is in the kitchen the old man admits he indeed found a woman and hid her in his shed asking them both to leave and promising to forget the incident Richard goes
toward the shed first snatching the man's phone the old man pretends to comply but then shoves him Richard Falls in a cabinet topples onto him allowing the man to grab his phone and dial emergency services but Richard attacks him and they struggle ending with the old man Victorious Richard finds a knife though and stabs him Iris watches the old man die helpless meanwhile Richard retrieves a gasoline canister from the shed and begins dousing the furniture just then Iris manages to tap a finger on the floor Richard sets the house Ablaze and steps outside as Iris
reaches a blind cord now seated in the old man's truck Richard notices the blinds moving and realizes where iris is hidden he pulls her from the burning house placing her in the truck's front seat as they drive away he berates her for making him kill the old man he'd never killed a man before unexpectedly his phone rings he puts it on speaker and Iris hears his daughter's voice announcing that she and her mom are coming up to the cabin in the mountains since he's been leaving to a and they miss him Richard feigns excitement and
ask them to bring everything for a picnic though Iris notices how enraged he seems nearly causing an accident with an oncoming bus later Richard realizes they're low on gas and has to stop at a station nearby an ambulance rushes by and smoke Rises over the hill where the old man's house burned Richard places a cap on iris's head and leaves to pay for the gas Iris tries to signal for help but her body won't fully cooperate still she manages to unfasten her seat belt turn toward the window and drop the cap from her head suddenly
a child's face appears at the window staring intently at her before Iris can make any noticeable sign Richard reappears and the boy's mother arrives sensing something is wrong but unable to pinpoint it she takes the boy away but glances back at Iris several times Richard gets back in floors the gas and they soon arrive at the site of his original crash where his damaged car still stands Richard changes into new clothes and begins repairing his car meanwhile iris's fingers are slowly regaining movement she flexes them just as a highway patrol car pulls up nearby a
concerned woman from the gas station had called describing a vehicle matching Richard's license plate Richard attempts to dismiss the officer's questions but it's clear the officer is suspicious noticing a strange truck in Richard's bruised face the officer grows wary in that moment Iris manages to crack the window slightly prompting the officer to take a closer look Richard tries to pass Iris off as his wife a woman deeply affected by the loss of their child who's now struggling with alcohol he uses her son's real name and recounts the actual story of the boy's death causing Iris
to tear up seeing her distress the officer almost believes Richard's story but Iris manages to whisper help and the sight of zip ties and a filled syringe in the truck convinces the officer that something illegal is happening he reaches for his weapon but Richard strikes first hitting him with a metal chain then beating him to death he loads the officer's body into the patrol car and sets it on fire driver mov away from the scene Richard blames Iris for the officer's death claiming it's all her fault now able to speak Iris retorts saying that his
mental state is to blame she recalls his story about the hospital and hints that his mind fractured back then Richard pulls the vehicle over and explains that when he saw his girlfriend's broken neck he gained a sense of clarity realizing his purpose he thanks her death for granting him this Mission from God Iris reminds him of his family pointing out how much he loves them and reasons that this has to end she proposes he just let her go she knows nothing about his true identity or background which means he won't be caught but Richard changes
course taking her to a nearby lake he stops at the shore and Iris manages to grab a syringe even pricking his leg with it but she lacks the strength to push the plunger Richard laughs at her weaken State and Iris suddenly recalls that earlier that morning she had wanted to die he grabs a knife places her in a rowo gets in himself and rows to the center of the lake realizing the end is near Iris starts crying and asks Richard to retrieve her son's toy boat from her pocket as he does she seizes his knife
and stabs him in the neck he pulls out the knife and reaches for a gun but she pushes him overboard Richard struggles to climb back into the boat but Iris grabs the gun and Fires at him causing him to disappear beneath the water exhausted Iris collapses at the bottom of the Boat watching as blood stains Mar the water's surface suddenly the boat starts to fill with water from bullet holes in its sides she has pulled down Into the Depths still bound the toy boat her son treasured floats peacefully on the lake surface just as Iris
emerges at the shore exhausted and alive after catching her breath she notices Richard still alive lying nearby she approaches him and surprisingly thanks her would be killer a budget friendly horror story from the Damsel in Distress genre crafted with familiar plot twist a measured and well-acted Thriller though it could benefit from more bloody moments and slightly fewer dialog LS though that's a matter of taste
