Strange Darling

Director: JT Mollner
Starring: Willa Fitzgerald, Kyle Gallner, Barbara Hershey, Ed Begley Jr., Madisen Beaty, Bianca Santos, Eugenia Kuzmina, Steven Michael Quezada, Denise Grayson, Sheri Foster, Jason Patric, Giovanni Ribisi
Running Time:  96 min.
Rating: R

★★★ ½ (out of ★★★★)

While there's a jarring reversal that occurs midway through writer/director JT Mollner's excitingly original horror thriller Strange Darling, it's almost unfair to categorize it as a "twist." Just the very word falsely implies a gotcha gimmick intended to sacrifice story for shock when the truth's hiding in plain sight the entire time. It's the story's structure that throws us, but what's most surprising is how a concept this clever hasn't yet been explored to the extent Mollner does here.

Those looking for profoundly complex theories about consent, misogyny or gender issues would be barking up the wrong tree since this isn't trying to tell us anything we don't already know. Instead, Mollner implies we often choose to look the other way, falling into some of the same traps his characters do. The impact comes not from what the film says or even how, but that it even bothers to ask. Structurally, there's a lot to take in, but the pieces fit together, eventually reaching a crucial juncture where it grabs hold and doesn't let go.

Introduced as a dramatization of an infamous serial killer's murder spree that climaxes in rural Oregon, we see a bloody and injured woman called the "Lady" (Willa Fitzgerald) running out of the woods in  red hospital scrubs. It turns out she's being chased by a mustachioed, shotgun wielding man credited as the "Demon" (Kyle Gallner) who follows her to the farmhouse of aging hippie wilderness couple Frederik (Ed Begley Jr.) and Genevieve (Barbara Hershey). 

When the Lady seeks refuge at their residence, the Demon closes in, with the film flashing back to the pair's one-night stand at a local hotel that led to this. But the shocks are provided by what happens in between, their feud now culminating in a volatile encounter that will transform this cat-and-mouse game into a grueling, high stakes battle for their lives.

Kicking off with a barrage of title cards that would make Tarantino proud and a Texas Chainsaw-inspired voice over provided by Jason Patric, Mollner has us questioning early whether what we're seeing is based on real life events. In this era of true crime obsession it's easy to believe certain details could have been, as his six nonlinear chapters lay the groundwork for surprising developments that will have many clamoring for a rewatch in its chronologically accurate order. 

The picture was shot on 35 mm film and you can tell, with first time cinematographer Giovanni Ribisi (yes, him) giving this a beautifully washed-out look that perfectly aligns with Mollner's retro aesthetic. Though events take place in 2022, the year could just as easily be 1972, save for the presence of iPhones and few other contemporary details. And a haunting soundtrack from Z Berg prominently features an iconic Keith Carradine assisted cover of "Love Hurts," along with a variety of other acoustic AM radio ballads that further convey its throwback sensibility. 

As a chilling 24-hour account of a serial killer's rampage, it's fascinating and darkly humorous, with many narrative detours evoking a more heightened response than if the timeline was traditionally presented. Subverting expectations to this level just wouldn't work without Mollner's jumbled storytelling device, which the studio inexplicably wanted to scrap before cameras rolled.  

Reacher actress Willa Fitzgerald's breakthrough performance as the Lady constantly challenges viewer's notions of how other characters read her, as an already toxic sexual encounter spirals dangerously out of control. The Demon isn't exactly all he appears to be either, with Gallner playing on certain assumptions of male loners before twisting and turning them beyond recognition with his best big screen outing yet. Hershey and Begley Jr. are a welcome presence, bringing some much needed levity to their smaller roles while also partaking in one of more impressive breakfasts you'll ever see.  

The film's hypnotizing opening and closing shots can't be viewed in a vacuum since their full context will eventually reveal more than our perceptions trick us into believing. What unfolds between the two characters only scratches the surface of this oddly compelling disasterpiece told from a different, unexplored perspective. Violent, unsettling and emotionally charged, you'd be hard pressed to find another recent thriller that takes the daring risks this does, with most of them paying off in disturbingly brilliant ways.

Wolfs

Director: Jon Watts
Starring: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Amy Ryan, Austin Abrams, Poorna Jagannathan, Zlatko Burić, Richard Kind, Frances McDormand
Running Time: 108 min.
Rating: R

★★★ (out of ★★★★)     

Its title may be a grammatical nightmare, but writer/director Jon Watts' Wolfs finds two of the world's biggest movie stars reunited in roles that only further confirm their value. An action comedy throwback to when that genre routinely packed theaters, a project like this almost feels like a complete outlier now. But tight direction and a pair of immensely enjoyable lead performances end up being enough to temporarily breathe life into what could have been a paint-by-numbers effort. 

Built around a straightforward premise, George Clooney plays a cold, emotionally detached "fixer" not unlike his avenging protagonist in 2007's Oscar nominated Michael Clayton. Only this time, he's more likely to break the law than uphold it, remaining meticulously obsessive until an unexpected visitor forces him to face the possibility his skill set isn't as unique as he thought. 

That this interloper is played by Brad Pitt enables the actors to take dry, sarcastic jabs at each other, successfully calling back to the chemistry the duo shared in the Oceans films. While both are capable of turning an eye roll or sideways glance into pure hilarity with their understated expressions, what develops is an effective action bromance with bickering characters who can't stand just how alike they really are. 

Panicked Manhattan District Attorney Margaret (Amy Ryan) calls the number of an anonymous professional fixer (Clooney) when a young man she took back to her hotel room ends up dead. After arriving and calmly taking stock of the scenario, the fixer asks Margaret some questions before starting the clean-up process, assuring her everything will be fine if she does exactly what he says. Unfortunately, they're interrupted by a second unnamed fixer (Pitt) who was given instructions by the hotel's owner Pam (Frances McDormand) to sweep this situation under the rug. 

While neither "lone wolf" trusts the other, Pam orders the two men work together for the sake of protecting the hotel's reputation. But while debating how to best solve this issue and dispose of the body, one of them makes a discovery that reveals something more dangerously complicated. So if the feuding fixers want to avoid getting killed, they'll need to stop arguing long enough to rectify what's suddenly become a gigantic mess.

From the initial tone and execution, it's easy to understand how audiences could be roped into thinking this will be a deadly serious crime drama. And even when Pitt first appears, lingering doubts still surround that assumption, as Watts smoothly lulls us into a situation that's about to spin way out of control. 

With few expressions and even fewer words, Clooney's character retains complete control, at least until Pitt's fixer arrives and things go sideways. Neither takes kindly to a competitor invading their territory, but one of the better aspects of Watts' script is how it suggests an imaginary underground of criminal fixers who think only they can do this dirty work.

As their dilemma grows more complex, levels are revealed that go well beyond a prominent D.A's hotel indiscretion. And much of it involves protecting an unnamed asset referred to as the Kid (Austin Abrams), who's carrying something valuable enough to cause huge concern. Abrams' manic, livewire performance is the film's highlight, providing the perfect foil to Clooney and Pitt's exasperated fixers, who just can't agree on how to handle him. 

An excitingly chaotic and hilarious chase through New York City streets is Watts' pivotal set piece and it doesn't disappoint, nor do encounters with a no-nonsense medic (Poorna Jagannathan) and a Croatian mobster (Zlatko Burić) whose daughter's wedding they accidentally crash. And the great Richard Kind briefly pops up in an amusingly memorable scene as the Kid's Frank Sinatra-obsessed dad. 

For supposed experts in this narrow field, these fixers are pretty sloppy, though there's nothing normal about either the job at hand or this reluctant partnership.  How similar they are is a detail everyone notices but them, creating a humorous dynamic where their oversized egos prevent them from realizing they're stronger together than alone.

Forced to begrudgingly get on the same page in the final act, it's to make a moral choice that requires them abandoning the rule book to embrace their consciences instead. Without time for debate or wiggle room, it becomes glaringly apparent that being a lone wolf carries baggage neither considered. Ending on a cliffhanger of sorts, Wolfs is the kind of film you wouldn't mind getting a sequel to, if only so Clooney and Pitt can have a rematch.