Fantastic Fest Minis - THOROUGHBREDS

Fantastic Fest Day 1

Fantastic Fest starts off easy for the people just getting in (not me) or those who get totally freaked out by large crowds (absolutely me).  The show got going at 5:30pm with the big opener, THOROUGHBREDS.  Now, the opening movie was supposed to be Martin McDonagh’s 3 BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI, but it dropped out due to the controversy surrounding this year’s event—which I will elaborate on later. 

My strategy with FF lineup is to jump in blind as much as possible.  All I knew about THOROUGHBREDS going in was that it starred the spooky girl from The VVitch and SPLIT (Anya Taylor-Joy).  This time she plays it straight as the buttoned up, over-privileged teen Lily. It’s Olivia Cooke bringing the spooky as Lily’s budding sociopath pal, Amanda.  The distinction between emotionless psycho and repressed Connecticut boarding school brat is shockingly thin, and soon roles begin to reverse.  Which is good, because with those huge, hypnotizing eyes, it is impossible for Taylor-Joy to hide her inner spookiness.  

Slow, methodical, and gorgeously shot, THOROUGHBREDS is a chilly movie, more intellectually fascinating than emotionally gripping.  A murderous plot provides the motivation, but director Cory Finley is more interested in character study than action.  Anton Yelchin steals the show as a small time dirtbag, in one of his last performances.  

It’s a solid, if quiet, one.

More to come. 

C Chaka