Movie with Abe: 30 Beats (Capsule Review)

30 Beats
Directed by Alexis Lloyd
Released July 20, 2012

This steamy summer drama comes just in time as the heat wave finally breaks. “30 Beats” is a narrative of separate interactions, following the newer of two characters from one segment to the next. Each scene includes some sort of sexual encounter, all untraditional in their own way. It’s easy to get attached to the way the story works but not to its characters, since they’re gone almost as soon as they appear. The connections between each of the personalities are of varying degrees of interest, and a slew of well-known actors populate the cast, including Justin Kirk, Jennifer Tilly, Paz de la Huerta, and Lee Pace. The standout is Lithuanian actress Ingeborga Dapkūnaitė as a kindly prostitute with obstacles blocking her path to her dream job of running her own gallery. The film is intense, intimate, and often uncomfortable throughout its runtime, but its impact isn’t lasting. Perhaps that’s the film’s main message: passion doesn’t linger, and it’s best to capture the heat of the moment.

B-