By Staci Layne Wilson
@StaciWilson

When 12-year-old Bird (Ella Ballentine) attends a funeral, she has no idea it might wind up being her own…

Standoff hits the ground running as the hapless little girl, armed only with her camera, comes face-to-mask with an anonymous assassin (Laurence Fishburne) who chases her into the woods, and into the lonely cottage of Carter (Thomas Jane), a troubled veteran.

The last thing Carter wants is company, but he’s got it – and as he tries to protect the youngster from the gunman with nothing but an old rifle with a single shell, an intriguing, claustrophobic game of cat and mouse unfolds.

Standoff is not as accomplished as Panic Room, nor is it as engaging as Everly, but it has elements of both films – plus a somewhat sappy backstory on why Carter is so depressed. But that’s kept to a minimum and mostly the movie is a taut tete-a-tete between the vet and the assassin.

The dialogue is brisk, as are the twists and turns. Since it all takes place in basically one place (Carter’s two-story country residence), the focus is firmly on its characters. Thankfully, the three leads are more than up to the task.

This is the first crack at helming a major production for writer/director Adam Alleca, and he shows potential. Prior to Standoff, he is best known for writing the screenplay for The Last House on the Left. He has a several more projects coming down the pike, including Cell, starring Samuel L. Jackson, John Cusack and Stacy Keach, and Delirium, with Patricia Clarkson and Topher Grace.

Sure, there are plot holes and moments in which one must suspend their disbelief, but for a short suspenser, Standoff is pretty big on entertainment.

Standoff will be released February 16, 2016.

80 Minutes

Rated R

Get times and tickets at Fandango.com.

STANDOFF Review — Sleeper Hit Worthy?