Nothing can prepare you for the series of events that happen in this twisted movie about a one-night stand gone wrong. If you loved Barbarian, then you will lose your mind (in my opinion) over this instant classic.
This review contains 0 spoilers, but I must set the stage for you. The film opens up with a high-speed chase – a woman (Willa Fitzgerald ) on the run from a very pissed off man with a gun (Kyle Gallner). The opening hits you hard with eerie 70’s horror vibes, bright colours, nasty injuries, chilling music that pounds your eardrums – no dialogue, just sounds that screech and hold your throat so hard you cannot breathe.
Because that’s what the first scene does. It stops the oxygen from running through your body and pulls you to the edge of your seat. I will admit that I did find the music at times to be a bit much at times but I was quickly brought back into the lore as the story went on. There was not a moment during the 96-minute run time where I was bored. The film is told in a non-linear style and it’s confusing as hell because, the whole time, you think you know what is happening. You may think you have it figured out, but trust me you don’t.
Fitzgerald and Gallner kill their performances, they have such good chemistry and I would love to see them on screen more together. Gallner’s intensity and ability to handle quick changing emotions paired well with Fitzgerald’s frigidness and mania. By the end of this movie, I left out the biggest ‘WTF did I just watch?!’ I was uneasy and really not sure how to feel with the film’s ending.
Me every 5 minutes watching this movie
There was a particularly morally grey moment where I truly did not know whose side to take. It made me feel sick to my stomach and question my feminism. I truly don’t know what this movie is trying to say, but as you gentle readers know- that is our MO at ScreeFish, discovering the why behind the camera. So, here goes:
I feel this movie is trying to say (without spoiling anything) that unchecked trauma shapes the world around you. It is obvious there is something wrong with our main… heroine? Victim? Otherwise, she wouldn’t be caught up with Gallner. Because this is a horror, lessons are learned the hard way because thems the rules and, for our main stars, they are both past the point of no return.
Aside for the gore, the horror and the WTF-ery, this film is full of unsettiling characters who are treat to watch. Definitely check out this movie. I promise this one will be added to your ‘spooky season’ watch list.
Strange Darling is in theatres now.
