Running Time: 97 Minutes
Starring: Willa Fitzgerald, Kyle Gallner, Ed Begley Jr., Barbara Hershey, Steven Michael Quezada, Madisen Beaty, Jason Patric, Giovanni Ribisi
When 2022's excellent Barbarian was released, anybody who watched it shared that the best way to experience the film was by knowing as little as possible. The same can be said of Strange Darling, JT Mollner's sophomore feature which shares producer Roy Lee with Barbarian. This makes it difficult for a critic, as part of writing reviews is the slim hope that somebody will read what they have written, but I am going to buck that trend in this case and say the best thing to do is go into this film blind.
What writer/director JT Mollner has crafted is best experienced by knowing nothing about it, and allowing the exquisitely crafted feature to unfold before your very eyes. As such, I will strongly suggest that you stop reading my review and await the film's cinematic release, because it deserves to be experienced in the same way as Barbarian, and will deliver an equally rewarding experience. For anybody who has remained with this review, I will move forward with descriptions as spoiler-free as possible while still hitting my minimum word count.
A tale that is presented in six chapters, the film opens with a cat-and-mouse game in play. Arriving on-screen in red scrubs is a running woman with a bleeding ear, referred to in the titles as The Lady (Willa Fitzgerald). Hot on her heels is a man that the titles ominously refer to as The Demon (Kyle Gallner), wielding a gun as he is in pursuit with a fire in his eyes. As the chapters unfold within a non-linear fashion, what unfurls across the 97-minute runtime spans from a one-night stand to the final slayings in a serial killer's vicious murder spree.
Nothing is as it seems across this twisty thriller, as the narrative keeps viewers on their toes in the midst of set-pieces laden with tension and a great sense of humour. The revelations are delivered phenomenally throughout, with no turn in the story feeling included for the sake of it, as each expansion on the tale instead adds layers. The deft way tone is handled seems unfathomably achievable, yet it is done with such grace that ensures viewers will remain captivated to see how it all ends.
Central to the narrative is an ever-reliable Kyle Gallner, capturing intensity and a sweet charm that is perfectly suited to the shifting narrative. Opposite him is a revelatory Willa Fitzgerald, tremendously bringing alive the pursued party who is in dire straits, intent on keeping a distance from her pursuer with a dogged determination. Yet the real star of this film is not in-front of the camera, as Giovanni Ribisi pivots to cinematographer and delivers a stunning visual style that is presented in 35mm. After the man built a career in works such as Friends, Avatar, and Ted, he may have found a newfound calling based on his exceptional work here. To put it very bluntly, Strange Darling is absolutely fucking phenomenal.
Strange Darling made its International Premiere at Frightfest 2024. It is available now in U.S. cinemas, and in UK cinemas from September 20th
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