One part gothic thriller, one part black comedy and one part Dickensian mystery, Dig Two Graves dramatizes the cycle of violence that perpetuates itself over generations in a small backwoods town.

The story centers on Jacqueline, a 14-year-old girl nicknamed “Jake” by her older brother Sean. After Sean mysteriously disappears at a rock quarry, Jake is visited by 3 Moonshiners who offer to bring her dead brother back to life in exchange for taking another life. As Jake wrestles with this morally uncertain proposition, the dark history of her family is unearthed and the mystery surrounding the moonshiners is illuminated. The Moonshiners are drawn in the tradition of the Shakespearean witches from Macbeth. While the tone of the film blends realism with mysticism, the motives and powers of the Moonshiners, like the Shakespearean witches, are largely ambiguous. Are they in possession of supernatural powers or are they tricksters preying upon human fallibility to unleash destruction into the world? The answers to these questions are revealed only in the final moment of the story.

Ultimately, the film is about family and the lengths we are willing to go to, to protect those we love. The film also calls into question the notion of good and evil, heroes and villains, suggesting instead an infinite shade of moral grey. At what point does the victim, in a relentless pursuit of vengeance, become the victimizer? The title, Dig Two Graves, is a reference to a Confucian proverb that warns, “When embarking on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.”