Complete Monster: "Morgan Warner" presents himself as a sympathetic victim, but he is revealed to be a "pure evil" monster named Carson Thomas. A former business associate of Archer Monroe, Carson was a Serial Rapist who considered drugging women into the bedroom to be his "ace in the hole". When he raped Archer's wife Catherine, Carson was attacked by Archer with intent to kill him; Carson took advantage of their conflict, wounding a young man in a vehicular accident by killing the man so he could blackmail Archer with the death. Though locked in a bunker for 30 years by Archer as punishment for his crimes, Carson manages to poison Archer and manipulate Archer's daughter Lauren into sympathizing with and releasing him. Carson promptly murders several innocent people, forces Catherine to recount her rape to Lauren, and reveals his plan to leave Lauren and Catherine to slowly die in the bunker while he ruins the lives of the rest of their family. Carson then uses his last words to spitefully hurt Lauren by claiming she is his daughter from his rape of Catherine.
Critical Backlash: The film received a mostly negative reception upon its release, holding a Rotten Tomatoes score of 25%, although quite a few critics singled out Simon Pegg's creepy turn as Morgan as one of its few strengths.
He Really Can Act: Viewers were surprised by Simon Pegg's performance as Morgan, showing not just a more dramatic, but downright villainous side to the comedic actor that nobody had seen him do before.
Moral Event Horizon: Carson Thomas, AKA Morgan, crossed it when he raped his friend Archer Monroe's wife years ago.
Narm: The shocking, mangy wig that Simon Pegg gets saddled with as Morgan. One reviewer quipped, "hopefully Pegg’s wig negotiated a percentage of the backend. It’s doing the most work here to keep us entertained."
Questionable Casting: One common criticism was Lily Collins as Lauren, not due to her performance (which is fine), but due to an unfortunate case of Older Than They Look, which makes it hard for some to buy the youthful-looking actress as a successful District Attorney. Collins herself was actually thirty when the film was made, and District Attorneys have been elected around this age (although it doesn't happen often), but for most viewers, it just felt unrealistic.
