Breaking Point
A young man, desperate to pay for his dying mother's cancer treatment, attempts to rob a corrupt billionaire.
What makes a tale people remember, talk about... recommend? Flashy visuals? Well, that’s a nice ingredient. But it’s a side dish - not the main course.
The hook all films need is a human theme. Preferably one that’s topical and hits home. Tell a story that resonates, and you’ll have audiences on the edge of their seat.
Ripped from recent headlines, Zech Elliott’s Breaking Point zeroes in on protagonist Jesse Brooks. At 24, he’s got his life ahead of him. But his mother…
Is at her end. Diagnosed with cancer, she’s gone the chemo route, but that’s not enough. At her bedside, Jesse’s a loving son: keeping her company, and reminding her to take her pills. It’s a huge burden for anyone, let alone one so young. But when physician Dr. Peterson pulls Jesse aside, the prognosis is about to get even worse…
DR PETERSON
I’m afraid that without
immediate treatment she won’t
survive the month. We’re doing whatever
we can to slow the cancer but it’s
already spread to other parts of her body.
JESSE
I thought she was doing
better this week?
DR PETERSON
We thought so too but recent tests
confirm that the cancer has spread.
We’re doing the best we can but
immediate treatment may slow it
down for another 6 months.
JESSE
How much is treatment?
There’s a long pause.
DR PETERSON
Two hundred and fifty thousand.
As Jesse gulps: Might as well be a million. And insurance is guaranteed to deny that claim.
That night, fate takes another turn when a burned out Jesse – sorting through already accumulating stacks of bills – sees billionnaire Vincent Duvall’s smirking mug on the screen. Duvall’s been accused of fraud: but asserts to clamoring reporters that HE’S the true victim here:
NEWS REPORTER (TV)
Your company raised insulin prices
by 400% last year. Some families even claim-
VINCENT (TV)
If you can’t afford it, work harder.
Life’s not a charity.
Speaking of charity – Vincent’s throwing a ball at his mansion this evening. It’s allegedly for philanthropic reasons, but in truth to improve his PR. Everyone’s invited.
Everyone? Well, in that case: Jesse digs through his late father’s belongings, and retrieves… a gun.
If you think you know exactly where this is going… you don’t. Will Jesse “Luigi” Duvall?
No matter one’s political bent, how Breaking Point ends is sure to get audiences talking about things which DO matter and resonate. Life and death. Justice. And what steps are justified to protect those you love.