Well performed and constructed, Long Lost is a twist filled and sexy thriller that has a surprising moral core to its story about temptation and taboo.

Temptation is the main element that drives all matter of thriller. Over and over, characters pick that apple from the Garden of Eden and devour it with no thought of the consequences. The temptation found in Long Lost is very much low hanging fruit. Sex, money and the promise of an affluent lifestyle swirls inside the hearts and souls of its characters.  We watch on to see who will bite that apple first, and at what lengths they are driven to do so.

Written and directed by Erik Bloomquist (his feature debut), Long Lost centres on Seth (Adam Weppler) a directionless blogger who grew up in a broken home. When Seth is contacted by his long lost step-brother Richard (Nicholas Tucci), he accepts the invitation to reconcile at Nicholas’s sprawling Greenwich, Connecticut mansion. Almost immediately Seth feels an unease with his sociopathic brother, who uses his wealth and competitive persona as a weapon to belittle Seth. Mudding things even more is the presence of Abby (Catherine Corcoran), girlfriend of Nicholas who shows a more than friendly interest in Seth.

The performances from all three main players are universally good. Weppler convincingly plays a waffling dolt, yet is in no way a pushover. Corcoron brings a strong intelligence and seduction to a femme fatale role with a twist. Tucci is the standout, a Wolf of Wall Street meets American Psycho type that gets off on sophomoric games and belittling others.

Richard’s only power is his vast riches, which he flaunts and tempts Seth with at a routine clique. Of mention is the films main setting, a huge mansion with all kinds of novelty rooms to entertain and get lost in. A game of flashlight tag is both fun and thrilling as this trio scurry through the darkness with no idea if fun or foul awaits them around the corner.

Sex too is a key element in Richard’s game, with Abby his trump card in getting Seth to crossover to a point of no return. Corcoran is very convincing as the tool of seduction, and Bloomquist does a great job in raising the tension between this unlikely of gatherings that consistently skirts with taboo. Bloomquist also deserves praise for doing so without resorting to exploitation, with Seth inhabited with a strong moral core that defies the temptations that would have any other man turn into putty.

It results in a thinking man’s erotic thriller that treats temptation with the seriousness it deserves. Long Lost is a film about power and passion done with an intelligent mind and stakes aplenty at play.