EMOTIONAL ABUSE BOILS TO THE FREEZING SURFACE IN "TILL DEATH".

Not all abuse is physical. That is the staple of my outreach. Abuse is also psychological, verbal, and emotional; it is just as damaging.

Such a concept is beautifully portrayed in "Till Death" starring Megan Fox now available on Netflix. It bears a resemblance to "Gerald's Game" and "P2". A woman, Emma, having endured a traumatic event is driven into the arms of another man after ten years of misery with her emotionally abusive, controlling husband, Mark. On its face, we wonder why she is so apathetic and unhappy. After all, Mark is wealthy and powerful. He provides her with everything she needs and more. He shrouds her in designer clothes and expensive jewelry making her feel like she wouldn't need to work. Until the very end when he would strip her of every necessity for her own survival.

One might think she is 'ungrateful'. Oh, no . She is emotionally closed off and desensitized due to the emotional abuse

There are things happening behind closed doors that no one sees, hears, or feels. Until the morning after their 10/11 anniversary, the abuse surfaces to physical, undeniable, epic proportions. Mark shoots himself in the head right in front of her, but that's the least cruel part of his sick game. Before the suicide, he lays a series of cruel traps that she must survive. Worse, he leaves her no escape. If the traps don't kill her, the outdoor elements would. She has nothing but her intelligence and sheer will to overcome her final obstacle in order to be free from her gruesome marriage.She is incredibly determined to survive this day and outlive her husband.

Overcoming the death traps forces Emma to also face the extent of Mark's mental illness and abuse.

The game begins at their lake house. He secretly drives her the long distance during a lethal snowstorm and with no vehicle of her own. Then, he drains his car of its gas. All so she has no hope of escape. He destroys her phone so she can't call for help. He takes her shoes, clothes, and blankets to make her unable to maintain body heat in the midst of the winter snow. He strips her of any means of escape or aid from others.

Later, she finds a recording in the broken-down car where he "explains" his actions. He denies the possibility of a revenge plot. All he admits there is that he "was being called away". What a cop-out. This is in fact a revenge plot. It's written all over his actions. No amount of verbal denial can contest that.

Even her lover falls into that abusive mentality.
"Is it because of us?"
"I'm pretty sure it was because he was insane."

The fact of the matter is he wants her dead. He can't handle the idea of dying alone. If he can't have her, no one can. So, he orchestrates a way for her to join him in death. That is absolutely insane.

He also brings her intelligence and success into question. This is a form of gaslighting and emotional blackmail. Abusers love to remind their victims how unable they are of achieving independence. This keeps them codependent and under the abuser's control. In reality, this recording is a pathetic and cowardly last resort to keep control. However, his last attempt at control becomes the very thing that sets her free. He's dead. He can't be there to ensure the outcome, and it free her to act without the restriction of his critical eye. For a successful lawyer, he's not very smart, is he?

It's like he wasn't paying attention to her case at all. She is a survivor and a fighter. A heartless thug couldn't destroy her. Neither can a controlling, pampered douche bag. No matter how rich or powerful he is.

The night of Emma's attack (the source of her trauma) is the same night she meets Mark. He starts as the prosecutor on her case and puts her attacker in prison. This paints him as a knight in shining armor in her eyes, but reality dictates that he is a false hero.

He takes advantage of her trauma to reel her in by promising her safety and comfort. In exchange, she must sign away all sense of freedom. The problem here is that she is never treated for her PTSD, and it makes her numb. Completely stoic to the rest of the world. She is also untrusting.

After removing himself from the picture, he hires her attacker to kill her off. He not only endangers her, but he also retraumatizes her with the memories of her attack. I also think Mark hired that thug to remind Emma of the state of her life before their marriage. The night of her attack is the worst experience of her life. Again, he gaslights her. He wants her to panic, freeze, or crumble in defeat from the stress and anxiety of the day.

There's one thing he does not take into consideration...

It gives her strength, keeps her sane, and helps her to survive.

Fortunately, she doesn't buy any of the craziness that he sells that day. Her mind is strong, and she understands that this is the result of a troubled mind (to say the least). This honest understanding gives her the will to survive. She will not allow him or his accomplices to kill her. Multiple men cannot defeat her. She is a survivor, and his failure to see that is his biggest downfall.

She draws her strength from catharsis. He's not present to fight her anymore, and she immediately takes advantage. It's a small form of therapy (much like journaling) to scream out eleven years of frustration at his lifeless body. It releases tension and keeps her sane.

His absence also frees her to make good decisions. His disgusting, controlling voice is silent. No one is there to fight her, and her clever instincts take over. Despite his lack of faith in her intelligence, she is very smart and a natural problem solver.

These are the skills that help her to survive. She defeats those men again and again. Because they are unworthy of heed. These men believe she isn't strong, so they laughably put her in the position where they believe they will defeat her. Instead, it becomes an opportunity for her to defeat them.

And defeat them she does. Nah, she annihilates them, after which she has the first moment that day to breathe. The sirens in the distance indicate that help is on the way. Finally, she would see trustworthy people. All she can do at that moment is lie on the ice and stare at the sky because she knows it will not be the last time she sees it. She survives. She has the rest of her life to see it.

Instead, it is the first time in eleven years that she sees it. Sure, she's been outside plenty of times where the sky has been in her line of vision. However, not once in those eleven years does she really see it. Appreciate it. Appreciate being alive. Until that moment, she is not free to do so.

Her abusers are dead, and she is free.