In Carolina Caroline, we are introduced to Caroline (Samara Weaving), a young woman who lives at home with her father and works at a gas station in rural Texas. However, her life is upended when she meets Oliver (Kyle Gallner), a handsome grifter on the run who instantly charms her. With the open road firmly in view, the duo set out to wreak havoc on the American Southeast with one proviso: that they seek out Caroline’s estranged mother to get some answers.
Directed by Adam Rehmeier, Carolina Caroline is a thrilling heist film that never entirely puts itself into a box. Part crime thriller and part mother/daughter drama, Rehmeier balances tones that feel incongruent but weave together into something special.
But Carolina really sizzles due to the spectacular chemistry between Weaving and Gallner. With tension that can rise the temperature in the room, the duo truly brings the heat to their summer crime wave. As the dynamic duo race through the countryside, the steamy glares shared between them actually elevates their feisty heists. (What’s more Rehmeier gives the film a dry, warm glow, adding to the raw sensuality of their relationship.) Though their robberies are often simple in nature, their relationship makes them feel more relevant than mere cash grabs.
Yes, they’re in it for the money and the thrills. But they’re also in it for each other.
As Oliver, Gallner carries himself with a charismatic chaos. We believe his love for Caroline yet little else about him. He’s a mysterious wrecking ball who has the ability to convince you that the world belongs to you.
Yet Weaving’s Caroline is far from any ‘small town rube’. Though she’d follow him to the end of the earth, she’s never manipulated by Oliver. Instead, she’s drawn to the opportunity that he presents to burn the world down. Weaving plays Caroline with an inhibited fury that feels both earnest and reckless. As the film builds towards its wild conclusion, she gets the chance to show her incredible range as a performer. She’s soft, caring and compassionate. Yet, at the same time, there’s something within her that’s looking to cause a ruckus. (For example, there’s only one person who’s taking real risk in their bank robberies… and it isn’t Oliver.)
After all, Caroline feels like she’s owed more than money. She’s owed an explanation.
Without giving too much away, Caroline has been spiralling emotionally since her mother abandoned her when she was young. For Caroline, the opportunity to finally break free from home represents more than simply looking for a thrill. She sees the open road as a chance to finally find her mother and, in doing so, seek out a piece of herself that’s been missing for a very long time.
In this way, Carolina becomes something more than a modern retelling of Bonnie & Clyde. This is more about one woman’s quest to understand her identity – her story. Broken by hurt, Caroline is a good woman who wants to feel whole again. And Oliver appears to offer her a way to get closer to achieving her goal.
But in the midst of this, Caroline is faced with choices that keep pushing her further down the line of crime. With each sleight of hand or bank job, Caroline gives away part of her soul that made her so pure. To be clear, she is never naïve. But, every time she gives in to her impulses, she also treads on the line between good and evil.
She has a moral compass… but she doesn’t always allow herself to follow it.
And Rehmeier revels in the chance to explore what it means to dance with our devils. Even though she’s caught in a whirlwind, Caroline’s journey is given the appropriate amount of self-reflection. She’s honest about what she’s doing yet she seems like she’s also in denial. (“Are we good people pretending to be bad? Or bad people pretending to be good?,” she asks.) With every decision that she makes Rehmeier ensures that we both empathize and question her choices. We want her to be safe but we aren’t sure whether she wants to be saved.
It’s that wild spirit makes Carolina Caroline so compelling. With Weaving fully in the driver’s seat, Rehmeier has offered a film that feels like a modern (and cautionary) folktale. Every heist is buoyed by Caroline’s emotional journey into her heart that also threatens to steal her soul. It’s fiery, freeing and very, very entertaining. In short, it’s a road trip well worth taking.
Carolina Caroline is available in theatres on Friday, June 5th, 2026.
