‘Strange Darling’ Review – A Sleek, Riveting Cat and Mouse Thriller [Fantastic Fest 2023]

A large segment of thrillers released recently as part of the streaming era rarely have anything to say outside of telling a somewhat decent story with a couple of action set pieces thrown in here and there. Fortunately, that is not the case with writer/director JT Mollner’s sophomore feature Strange Darling, which premiered at Austin’s Fantastic Fest. The movie opens in thrilling fashion and doesn’t let up until the very end while also asking some important questions about the risks and dangers for women in the modern hookup culture found throughout Western society. How can we really know the strangers we meet out in the wild? Are there definitive red flags that signal that someone might be dangerous? The human ability to judge a book by its cover, so to speak, is put to the test in a considerable way in Strange Darling.

This thriller puts most of its weight on the shoulders of stars Willa Fitzgerald (Scream: The TV Series) and Kyle Gallner (Smile) as The Lady and The Demon. Told out of order in six chapters, we see The Demon hunt The Lady, beginning with an exhilarating car chase through the back roads of the Pacific Northwest. The setup implies an exciting yet uninspired take on a cat-and-mouse thriller, but as the story is rolled out, it proves to be anything but a simple run-of-the-mill plot. Fitzgerald and Gallner elevate an already impressive script, and their performances keep the audience engaged for the entirety of the runtime. 

A highlight of Strange Darling is the cinematography. The film being shot in 35mm gives it a unique look in the current age of digital filmmaking that enhances the look of even the most minute background details. This decision is given the opportunity to shine particularly in Chapters 1 and 2 of the story, as much of it is lit in neon blue or red. Not only do these colors jump off the screen, but they are a subtle indicator to the viewer of the coming tone shift in the linear story. The rest of the chapters in the film are shot almost entirely in daylight and maintain a consistently fierce tone and adrenaline past the climax of the action. 

Akin to the use of bright, contrasting colors early on in the story, the score’s utilization of lively, thunderous rushes of sound signifies the appearance of the serial killer and drastically heightens the intensity of every instance it is heard. While this is the most powerful portion of the score, the rest of it perfectly matches the tone of the rest of the film. Whether it comes with soft music acting as an undertone when the story is taking a rare breather or crescendos with a driving force as things ramp up, Craig DeLeon’s compositions combined with precise needle drops inform the viewer of how they should be feeling without them even noticing it. 

While the expert craft in Strange Darling is hard to ignore, so too is the story-telling decision of cutting the story into nonlinear chapters. This decision is likely to make or break this film for many viewers, but the story’s effectiveness truly hinges on splitting it up like this. If told in a linear fashion, the film would start off strikingly slow and ramp up in a hurry with no intention of looking back. The story progresses as needed while also splicing in moments for the audience to take a moment to check their heart rate. Now, this is not to say that these returns to the beginning of the story stop the momentum of the action in their tracks; they just allow for more time with the characters and give much-needed context for the ensuing finale. The reveals and twists are much more effective when told in this way. 

At face value, Strange Darling is a successful cat-and-mouse thriller from the very beginning, but as the film rolls through its brisk runtime of just under 100 minutes, it proves itself to be a film with something more to say. 

Strange Darling had its World Premiere in the Official Selection section of Fantastic Fest 2023.

Director: JT Mollner

Writer: JT Mollner

Rated: R

Runtime: 96m

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iH_b_6SKmd8]