A tale of innocence shattered, dreams destroyed and vengeance fulfilled, Descent begins with an idealistic vision of college sweethearts and wild house parties, but quickly falls apart when a rape sends a co-ed into a spiral of drugs, rage and despair. Maya (Rosario Dawson, also producer) is a promising student, identified by her professor as top of her class. When she meets Jared (Chad Faust) at a party, she's disgusted by the frat-boy mentality and the boys hitting on her friend. Maya's quick to mock Jared's pick-up lines and shrugs off his insinuations. But his persistent charm wins her over, and she gives him a chance by handing over her phone number. Jared later violently attacks her, both physically and psychologically, shattering her notions of a perfect life and sending her reeling into a state of depression. Maya soon floats into a circle of promiscuous drug users, abandoning the idealistic life she once sought for a world of hedonism and escape, until one day she finds herself face to face with the boy who stole everything from her. Offered a chance at the last word, Maya's grappling with the fear Jared instilled in her and her determination to avenge that pain culminates in a decision that will change them both forever. Promising young talents-director Talia Lugacy and co-screenwriter Brian Priest-have created a dark and daring commentary on rape and its aftermath. Rosario Dawson displays dynamic range, deftly handling the weighty material in theis potent debut feature.

Talia Lugacy