At a remote estate in upstate New York, newlyweds Leah (Ella Rae Peck) and Shane (Rigo Garay) celebrate their honeymoon, but a pall hangs over their union. She works for the publisher who will be releasing his debut novel, a lightly autobiographical examination of family trauma, alcoholism, and the immigrant experience. Barely suppressed tensions over family trauma would be enough kindling for a blowup, but Leah and Shane’s marriage is truly tested by the appearance of two weirdos with entrepreneurial zeal and a half-baked blackmail plot: John (John Speredakos) and Rose (Lorraine Farris). They’re looking for investors for John’s latest invention, a culinary breakthrough called the Crumb Catcher — and they won’t take no for an answer. A gonzo home invasion thriller from Larry Fessenden’s Glass Eye Pix that pummels the American Dream into just desserts, Crumb Catcher is a striking directorial debut from Chris Skotchdopole.
DIRECTORS STATEMENT
Crumb Catcher was born out of the rise of the Great Hate Magnet in 2016. What emerged was a twisted tale of home invasion and two couples at opposing ends of the American Dream, a reflection of the absurdist times that, in 2024, we are all still forced to participate in. My intention was to make something suspenseful, but my hope is that these characters have more to reveal. The film is a cautionary tale of how the ravenous need to find success can turn into anger, and how the desperate need to be loved can quickly transform into abuse. I want audiences to reach the end of the movie and wonder how we could have possibly gotten here; how have things unraveled so quickly, and with such devastating consequences? Much in the way that couples in abusive relationships spiral to a place of being unrecognizable, grotesque caricatures of their former selves. I also wanted to make people laugh.
