The Deep End (2001)

Set in Lake Tahoe, a housewife (Tilda Swinton) confronts a sleazy low life (Josh Lucas) and demands he end an affair he's having with her teenage son (Jonathan Tucker). He offers to end the relationship for $5,000 but when he is accidentally killed, the police treat his death as a murder. Based on the novel THE BLANK WALL by Elizabeth Sanxay Holiding (and previously filmed by Max Ophuls in 1949) and directed by Scott McGehee and David Siegel. As far as remakes go, this one is pretty good. Anchored by a nice performance by Swinton that brings layers that allow her to create a more complex character. Aside from switching the daughter to a gay son, the film stays pretty close to the source material. It's a pity they didn't have a stronger actor in the role of the blackmailer. In the 1949 film, James Mason did wonders with the role but Goran Visnjic in the same part never rises above adequate. With Peter Donat and Raymond Barry.