Clutch

1998 · 85 min · ★ 5.3

A man learns an unexpected lesson about the power of the written work in this dark independent comedy from Canada. Martyn (David Hewlett) is a young man who seems to be devoting his life to going to college; he's persuaded into stealing a rare and valuable book, but the burglary goes awry and Martyn is forced to kill a book dealer when he tries to hold on to the previous volume. Martyn now has to make a getaway, get rid of the body, and deliver the purloined letters, but there's a problem -- his car won't start. Martyn finds Theresa (Tanya Allen), a beautiful female auto mechanic, and persuades her to fix his vehicle. She agrees, but Martyn soon realizes that her boyfriend is the man he's just murdered. Theresa soon catches on that Martyn has stolen the book, and displays a greater interest in his ill-gotten literature than her boyfriend's death or repairing the car.

Directed by Chris Grismer