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In the frosted glow of 1990s Aspen, where wealth whispers in designer cashmere and danger comes dressed as glamour, director Megan Griffiths delivers a coming-of-age gut punch with Year of the Fox, a searing psychological drama starring The Six Triple Eight’s Sarah Jeffery in a performance that both seduces and devastates. Already playing in Seattle and Portland (starting July 18), the film opens in Los Angeles on August 1 at the Laemmle NoHo before arriving on digital platforms August 19.

If you’ve been craving the kind of coming-of-age story that does not flinch, that does not sanitize trauma, and that absolutely refuses to let the powerful off the hook, then Year of the Fox is your next cinematic obsession.

The Plot: When Aspen’s Glittering Façade Starts to Crack

Meet Ivy (Sarah Jeffery), a teenager caught in the crossfire of her parents’ acrimonious divorce in Aspen’s elite playground of the early ’90s. While grappling with her identity and awakening desires, Ivy is thrust into her father’s upper-crust social scene, an environment brimming with power, predators, and unspoken rules designed to protect the powerful.

When she draws the gaze of a wealthy and dangerous older man, Ivy and her circle of friends, naive but sharp, begin to play with a set of rules they don’t fully understand. As betrayal and illusions pile up like fresh powder on the slopes, Ivy must decide: does she walk the path laid out for her by the damaged women before her, or does she break away and claim her story?

The film, clocking in at a trim 97 minutes, never wastes a second. It’s a powder keg of female rage, teenage confusion, and systemic indictment wrapped in the pristine snowdrifts of Aspen’s privileged.

Behind the Camera: Megan Griffiths Directs with Ruthless Efficiency

Megan Griffiths, long admired for her ability to humanize social issues (Eden, Sadie, The Night Stalker), turns the lens with terrifying clarity toward the collision of innocence and privilege. And this isn’t theoretical for Griffiths. Her visual style, sparse, intimate, and observant, makes the predator’s gaze tangible. Her deep understanding of the female perspective is woven into every scene.

Griffiths is no stranger to genre-melding storytelling. With an impressive TV and indie film résumé, including producing director duties for The Summer I Turned Pretty and collaborations with the Duplass Brothers (I’ll Show You Mine), she brings emotional clarity and moral intensity to every frame.

Griffiths is also an outspoken advocate for sustainable production, a Seattle cinema icon, and a member of the Academy’s director’s branch. In short, she’s the real damn deal.

Scripted with Lived Truth by Eliza Flug

Screenwriter Eliza Flug drew inspiration from her own youth in Aspen. The authenticity bleeds through the script like red wine on white silk. Known for producing critical indie darlings like Sadie, Potato Dreams of America, and The Paper Tigers, Flug brings raw, autobiographical power to this screenplay. Her dialogue is subtle but surgical. Her character development comes from inside the trauma, not outside the spectacle.

With Year of the Fox, Flug doesn’t just write a story. She opens a wound.

The Cast: Sarah Jeffery Delivers a Career-Defining Performance

Let’s talk about Sarah Jeffery. If you thought she showed range in The Six Triple Eight or Charmed, Year of the Fox will shatter your expectations. Jeffery carries the weight of the film like a seasoned veteran, offering a performance that simmers with innocence, fear, anger, and agency. You can see the moment her character changes, like watching a glass break in slow motion.

Joining Jeffery are the always-excellent Jane Adams, the hauntingly effective Jake Weber, the up-and-coming Lexi Simonsen, and a deliciously unsettling Balthazar Getty as the wealthy predator whose attention alters everything. The ensemble delivers across the board, but it’s Jeffrey who leaves the deepest bruise.

Aesthetic Meets Substance

Cinematographer Sevdije Kastrati captures Aspen’s icy opulence with unnerving beauty, making every frame feel both seductive and treacherous. Editor Celia Beasley sculpts the emotional pacing with careful breathwork, and composer St. Kilda lays down a score that is dreamy, then devastating, just like the story itself.

Critics Are Talking

“A wily look at coming into one’s own… Year of the Fox provocatively evolves into a consideration about power in general when those that have it act with impunity.”

Stephen Saito, The Moveable Fest

“A tale of haunting class privilege. Maintains a strong level of acting by each cast member.”

Sabina Dana Plasse, Film Threat

Release Details: Where and When to Watch

• Now Playing: Seattle
• Portland: Starts July 18
• Los Angeles Premiere: August 1 at Laemmle NoHo
• Digital Platforms: Available nationwide on August 19

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