Trust is about the growing online relationship between a 14-year-old girl named Annie (Liana Liberato) and Charlie (Chris Henry Coffee), a man three times her age, and the aftermath it produces. It all starts "innocently" enough. Annie is trying out for the volleyball team at school and gets in a teen chat room looking for advice. Charlie professes to be a 16-year-old from California and gives her winning advice, but as they continue to talk over time, he reveals that he is really 20-years-old. At first, Annie is hesitant, but she finds herself falling for Charlie because they really "get" each other. Annie's parents, Will (Clive Owen) and Lynn (Catherine Keener) begin to notice Annie's growing addiction to her computer and cell phone and the fact that she is constantly chatting with her boyfriend, Charlie. When Will and Lynn take Annie's brother, Peter (Spencer Curnutt), to college for the first time, Charlie jumps at the chance to meet Annie in person. Naturally, Annie is shocked at Charlie's age and the fact that he keeps lying to her, but Charlie eases her fears, saying he thought she was different and could handle their age difference. Before she knows it, Annie is back at Charlie's dingy hotel room and he is taking advantage of her.
Annie's best friend comes forward, having seen Annie at the mall with this older man, and the FBI steps in to take over. Annie's parents are shocked to learn that Annie was not only raped by a predator in their absence, but that she never breathed a word of it and is now protecting the man she says she loves. Annie eventually opens up to her therapist, Gail (Viola David, Doubt), as she realizes the gravity of what happened to her and the fact that this man was using her. As Will feels powerless and searches for answers as to how this could have happened to his little girl, he and Lynn come to grips with the fact that neither Annie, nor their family, will ever be the same again.
Trust is an intense film, not only because of the delicate yet timely subject matter, but also because of the actors who play the pivotal roles. Liana Liberato is fantastic as Annie. Your heart breaks as you watch her. When she realizes that this man that she gave her heart and body to has betrayed her and, in fact, done this to several other girls, she just comes apart at the seams and it is heart-rending. It's a bit uncomfortable to see a 14-year-old girl in some of the scenes for this film (and not an older actress playing a younger role), but Schwimmer handles the scenes with finesse and lets your mind fill in the blanks, rather than going for gratuity. The way Charlie manipulates Annie's mind so easily is nauseating, as he uses her need to feel mature and her insecurities against her. Keener and Owen are brilliant as helpless parents who can do nothing to protect their daughter from her rapidly unraveling life, but Clive Owen really takes the cake. He has such an intensity in his role and he is incredibly believable.
I really enjoyed the aesthetic style and the way the online relationship was handled. An overlay of their chatting occurs as you see Annie at the computer or on her cell, texting to Charlie, so it's very immersive and it's not at all gimmicky. Schwimmer uses it throughout the film and it has a lot of impact. I also thought the scenes where Will is imagining what happened to Annie were quite well done. Will is tortured by a much more violent scene playing out that what actually happened and hears Annie crying out to him. There's also a scene where he fantasizes about brutally beating a local predator he found on a sexual predator website and it's really intense and has a different pace than the rest of the film.
The Blu-ray versions looks quite crisp, with inky darks that really make the internet chat overlay stand out. However, if your only option is DVD, the film won't suffer for it. Special features are light and only consist of a handful of deleted scenes and a featurette on how the film came to be, but they are worth watching. One of the deleted scenes, specifically, shed an entirely new light on the local predator Will had singled out for retribution. I also gained a new appreciation for David Schwimmer, as this topic has been one on his heart and mind for many years, since he regularly volunteers at a center for victimized women.
While Trust's subject matter is dark and difficult, this film is something every parent should see. Potential victims of online sexual predators are everywhere and the more aware parents can make their children, the better. Highly recommended.
