★★★1/2 out of ★★★★★
Intensity 🩸🩸1/2 out of 🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸
Directed by Gloria Mercer
Canadian thriller A Safe Distance deals in dramatic tension more so than nailbiting suspense, and offers plenty of reasons for genre-film fans to seek it out.
Official synopsis
Alex and her boyfriend Joey head into the wilderness for a romantic getaway. When Alex turns down Joey’s surprise proposal, he abandons her in the woods. She’s rescued by Kianna and Matt, an enigmatic young couple living off the grid. Stranded and shaken, Alex accepts their invitation to stay at their remote campsite. As she’s drawn into their intoxicating world, complicated emotions and unexpected connections begin to surface. But when she learns they’re fugitives wanted for a string of violent bank robberies, Alex must navigate the blurred lines between desire, loyalty, and survival.
Review
Director Gloria Mercer’s A Safe Distance (Canada, 2026) is an engaging blend of thriller and character study that boasts winning performances from its four leads, a solid screenplay by Aidan West, fine cinematography from Devan Scott, and a nice job at the helm by Mercer. The feature isn’t the sort of thriller that keeps you on edge throughout, but it certainly warrants constant attention as its lead character goes through some major personality changes.
Alex is that main character, and Bethany Brown does a remarkable job in the role. Abandoned by her boyfriend Joey (Chris McNally) after she turns down his marriage proposal during a camping trip she was reluctant to go on in the first place, she finds refuge with Kianna (Tandia Mercedes) and Matt (Cody Kearsley), who are camping nearby. It’s no spoiler to state here that they are wanted bank robbers; it’s in the official synopsis and also strongly hinted at early on in the film.
At a crossroads in her life and steady in her career, Alex is fascinated by the free, if illegal, lifestyle that the outlaw couple leads, and as she becomes a stronger part of the group dynamic, tension mounts. Viewers know from a cold open set after the trio has met that someone is going to die, which adds an air of mystery to the proceedings.
Strong Points
West’s dialogue and interaction between the characters is well written and plotted. Mercer paces the film nicely, allowing viewers to see the intimate interactions between Alex, Kianna, and Matt, which genre-film aficionados can guess in an educated manner that cracks will form in a relationship when a third party gets closer than one of the couple would like. Brown, Mercedes, and Kearsley bring their characters to realistic cinematic life, and nail the nuances of each complicated character. McNally has more of a supporting role but it is a crucial one, and he turns in fine work, as well.
Again, the main thrust of A Safe Distance is Alex’s finding herself in a space she would not normally inhabit — and Scott beautifully captures the sylvan setting — and with people who are seemingly decidedly different than her workmates and social circle back home. Mercer and West wring a good deal of suspense from this approach, and a third act event lands the film in true thriller territory.
Conclusion
Thriller devotees should find plenty of entertainment value with A Safe Distance. It’s a modern take on the classic plot of a stranger wedging between a romantically involved couple, and a well crafted one at that.
A Safe Distance had its world premiere at SXSW’s 2026 edition, which runs March 12–18 in Austin, Texas.