‘Stanleyville’ Review – Human Nature Reveals Itself In Darkly Bizarre Contest

Maria Barbizan (Susanne Wuest) is dissatisfied with her life. She is surrounded by what appears to be mindless drones stuck in mundane lives, working as cogs in the machine. One day she decides without hesitation to, quite literally, walk out on her own life. She is contemplating her next move when she is approached by a strange man called Homunculus (Julian Richings), who tells her that she has been chosen out of “hundreds of millions of candidates to participate in a platinum level exclusive contest” where she can win not only true enlightenment but also a slightly used habanero-orange compact sport utility vehicle. Excited by the idea of being special in some way and achieving enlightenment, she immediately agrees to participate. She later finds herself in a strange, loft style apartment where she meets Andrew Frisbee Jr. (Christian Serritiello), Felicie Arkady (Cara Ricketts), Manny Jumpcannon (Adam Brown), and Bofill Pancreas (George Tchortov), who are also all competing in the contest. She soon learns that these seemingly silly and non-threatening games may be more sinister than she initially thought, and her competitors are willing to win at any cost.

With the film Stanleyville, writers Rob Benvie and Maxwell McCabe-Lokos (the latter also directing) bring us a truly bizarre and absurd story that will have you laughing while your skin crawls off your body. Honestly, this film is like an encapsulation of Selina Meyer’s “what the fuck?” uncomfortable laughing gif, which isn’t a bad thing. The whole thing is a fun and interesting experience, and if you’re a fan of The Olympics, this might be worth checking out since the structure is similar, except it is darker and involves considerably lower stakes (or maybe not?).

Occasionally, there are points when the question of compliance and who really is in control enters one’s mind. That is one of the main mysteries that stays unknown. Maybe it is Homunculus (which is a term that has roots in literature and philosophy) all along because he thought it would be a fun social experiment. Most of the time he appears to make up rules as he goes along. It also begs the question, how far will humans be pushed to the edge when they think there is an endpoint with some kind of prize and someone who is calling the shots? These contestants eagerly do everything that is asked of them without any hesitation, no matter how weird it seems. Most of the games are benign and random, but when they are told on the spot that some of the games require them to stay overnight in the apartment where they met, no one refuses. There is confusion and hesitation, but none of them object. In fact, no one ever tells them that they have to stay, and yet, they all do and act as if they are actually prisoners. Of course, they’re all competing for the grand prize, and they’re all determined to win, so these other possibly harmful situations don’t faze them much. 

All of the participants are idiosyncratic characters. They are all like cartoon caricatures of human beings in a way because none of them have depth beyond each of their specific flaws and emotional damage. They could be compared to one-dimensional comic book villains. While Maria is strange, she does appear less intense and neurotic than the others. Her interest in the contest was piqued when she was told that she would gain true enlightenment. The car was just a bonus for her, but the others never mention true enlightenment or even have any interest in it. They all seem focused on the used car and the prestige of winning. They all insist to Maria that they weren’t specifically chosen. They tell her that they received a random email telling them they were selected which devastates Maria. She is certain that they are all there for a particular reason. She is determined to find something else other than her previous life devoid of meaning. It appears that because the others want to win for the “wrong” reasons, they are punished. The quest for life’s true meaning and knowledge is “righteous” while shallowness and greed are “evil.” This shouldn’t be surprising to anyone who has read a fable in their lifetime, though. At times Maria seems like a bizzaro Christ figure. She seems innocent, pure, and naive at the beginning, but by the end, the audience is left questioning if maybe instead she is just a harbinger of doom.

At the beginning of the film, Maria watches as a large bird crashes into her office window and dies. Her colleague, who is a few feet from her in the same room, doesn’t so much as even glance up from his desk and continues working. This leads to her walking out on her “normal” life where she is randomly approached by Homunculus at a shopping mall or transportation station of some sort, telling her she has been chosen. It’s almost as if she really was the only one who was destined for everything all along, but maybe the true enlightenment that she seeks is only cruel irony. When the contestants are asked to create a fully functional communication device, hers ends up being something akin to Pandora’s box. After the others listen to it, a strange kind of evil infect their minds. They are weak compared to Maria, and they are absolutely desperate to win, and there is a strange sinister force behind Maria’s eyes after they all listen to her device as well. She quickly becomes cold and jaded due to their dismissal of empathy. 

The others are all trying to prove something to themselves or someone else in their lives. We get the impression that Andrew is a rich boy with a father who is a very successful businessman. Andrew has failed in his attempts to emulate his father’s successes and is constantly chasing his father’s approval. Manny lacks self-confidence but desperately wants fame and for others to like him. Bofill is someone who does seem well-intentioned and altruistic but is ultimately vain in his attempt to find self-actualization. While Felicie is someone who is used to having to constantly prove herself which leads her to become obsessive about being the best. It’s not enough for her to win; she has to also completely obliterate her competition while doing so. All of these things come together to make a stew that not even the best therapist in the world would want to touch. 

Overall, while the film is entertaining, it doesn’t completely coalesce into something mind-blowing or particularly moving. When the participants are left overnight to complete their tasks and interact with each other, there are parts that drag. Individually, all of the cast’s performances are incredibly strong, but the chemistry gels better when Julian Richings, who is playing Homunculus, is on screen with them. His comedic timing brings everything together. Maybe being unable to become attached to the majority of the characters has that effect. None of them are completely unlikable, but they are like cartoons which can become annoying at times. Without the emotional attachment, the audience may be left just wanting to skip to the end to know who or what is behind all of this. Who wins? It becomes less about the journey. The story starts off strong because the premise is intriguing and the games are amusing and odd. We’re also getting to know these weird people, but it loses some of its steam as it spirals into madness. It becomes more like a fever dream than a coherent story, but there are scenes that mirror each other which may connect some dots. 

This film could definitely be an interesting watch for sociology and psychology classes. It starts to devolve into a Lord of the Flies type situation. One could learn about social obligation, compliance, insecurity, and power dynamics. The eerie and uneasy nature of the film is successful and remains throughout, creating a feeling of much higher stakes than there probably are. It’s best not to question what is happening and accept that you are in this new reality now where people are willing to compete in ridiculous games that may be detrimental to their well-being for a used car. If you do, you’ll enjoy the descent into madness more. Fans of offbeat, dark humor and absurdity will enjoy this one. The style of writing and character development is similar to Dual, a film that premiered at Sundance this year and was just released in theaters. It is definitely worth the unusual ride.

Stanleyville is currently playing in select theaters from Oscilloscope Laboratories with additional expansion in the coming weeks.

Director: Maxwell McCabe-Lokos

Writers: Rob Benvie and Maxwell McCabe-Lokos

Runtime: 1 h 28m

Rating: 3 out of 5

[youtube https://youtu.be/jlJjWkCXsv8]

Jessica Gonzales

When I’m not busy daydreaming or having an existential crisis, I can usually be found watching a movie or TV, listening to music or a podcast, or with my nose in a book.