Quite unlike any other film you’ll see this year, writer-director JT Mollner’s Strange Darling is a heart-pounding face-off between its two co-leads.
Nothing is quite what it seems when The Lady (Willa Fitzgerald) and The Demon (Kyle Gallner) endure a twisted one-night stand – and its fallout.
Mollner makes the ingenious move to tell the story in non-linear fashion – in six chapters and an epilogue – which adds uncertainty and surprises to what, at its heart, is a relatively simple dark delight.
It’s a movie packed with twists and, inevitably, some are more shocking than others as Fitzgerald and Gallner showcase enough touches of duality to ensure their characters’ true motivations aren’t as clear as initially suggested.
To say much more about the plot would seriously ruin your enjoyment of the film, so it’s time for me to zip it on that front – go in as blind as possible.
Frequent TV star Fitzgerald electrifies in her biggest movie role to date; equally vulnerable, inquisitive, seductive and sinful, her The Lady is a cracking creation.
As I’ve said before, Gallner ( Smile , The Passenger ) is establishing himself as a great go-to reliable hand in the horror and thriller genres and adds more nuance with each performance.
The pair are sparkling together, regularly in unexpected ways, and the cat-and-mouse power dynamics shift back and forth.
Veterans Ed Begley Jr. and Barbara Hershey lend a bizarre hand as doomsday preppers Frederick and Genevieve who feel a little too unreal to exist in this environment.
Mollner shot the flick on 35mm film using a variety of cameras and lenses which lends it a distinct visual style, aided by top actor Giovanni Ribisi on cinematography duty.
A couple of moments of shocking violence hit hard too and Mollner throws everything at the screen – via his camera and storytelling – to make Strange Darling a well named electric, energetic thrill ride.
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Robert Osbourne said: “Starting watching Mayor of Kingstown on Amazon Prime and I am hooked.”
● Strange Darling is available on DVD and Blu-ray now.
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