In her late 20’s, Jess (Jasmine Batchelor) doesn’t have a firm grasp on her future. Unsure about her job and her relationship, she jumps at the opportunity to be a surrogate for her two gay male friends (Sullivan Jones and an excellent Chris Perfetti). Her decision to say yes before thinking it through presents a welcome distraction from the confusion in her personal life.

When the three receive bad news from their doctor after 12 weeks, Jess’ actions gradually become erratic and driven purely by emotion. With the uncertainty of the future once again at the front of mind, her moods and decisions begin to directly impact the friends she initially wanted to help with the stakes now much higher.

The Surrogate is a well presented and acted film, though given the subject matter it isn’t as emotionally hard-hitting as one might hope. The final act finally packs emotional punch during a confronting scene, but soon after the film simply ends without resolution, far too ambiguous for the clear cut narrative here.

Lacking raw emotion and tension to be truly satisfying, The Surrogate could have been executed in a much more effective manner.