Consumed (2015)

Consumed is the kind of thriller that sneaks up on you: a grounded, contemporary fear story where the monster isn’t supernatural, it’s uncertainty—about what we eat, who we trust, and how small a person can feel when institutions close ranks. Daryl Wein gives the film a tense, lived-in realism, and Zoe Lister-Jones anchors it with a raw, credible urgency as a mother whose search for answers turns into a tightrope walk between paranoia and possibility. The movie’s vibe is part investigative drama, part creeping conspiracy, building dread through everyday spaces—clinics, labs, cornfields—until they feel charged with menace. It won’t be for everyone if you prefer clean-cut villains or tidy conclusions, but if you like smart, topical thrillers that leave you thinking (and maybe reading labels a little differently), it’s a gripping watch.

Consumed is clearly trying to mash a paranoid thriller with a socially conscious drama about GMOs, corporate power, and a mother’s fear when doctors can’t help her child. The problem is it often feels more like a message-delivery system than a gripping story, with on-the-nose dialogue and plot turns that don’t build suspense so much as push you to a conclusion. The “danger” vibe leans heavily on anxiety and coincidence, so if you want a tight, twisty conspiracy thriller, you may find it flat and a bit preachy. That said, Zoe Lister-Jones sells the desperation well, and if you’re already interested in food politics and don’t mind a film that argues more than it entertains, it may still hold your attention.