New Release Review: Thoroughbreds

Thoroughbreds

(2018. Director: Cory Finley. Starring: Olivia Cooke, Anya Taylor-Joy, Anton Yelchin, Paul Sparks)

SYNOPSIS:

Lily (Anya Taylor-Joy), an upper class young student with bold academic dreams, begins tutoring her former friend Amanda (Olivia Cooke) who has become something of a social pariah for seemingly gruesome reasons. Soon after Amanda makes the startling confession that she feels no emotions at all. Although initially disturbed by this revelation Lily slowly begins to realise that there may be certain advantages to befriending a sociopath.

Thoroughbreds, like it's title characters, is an unusual beast.

Although clearly a 'genre' film it's hard to place exactly what genre it falls into. Taking it's inspiration as much from the cold, nasty worlds of Brett Easton Ellis as it does from previous films about scheming teenagers (both Heathers and the Rian Johnson's equally noir-ish Brick come to mind), Thoroughbreds blends a plot of Hitchcockian intrigue with a sly sense of cruel humour which leaves you equally fascinated and disgusted throughout it's refreshingly brief and focussed 92 mins.

Adapted for the screen from his own unproduced stage play, Thoroughbreds feels like a natural fit for the theatre with the economy with which it's plot unfolds. You could count the number of important characters on one hand and almost all the action unfolds within the walls of the immense mansion owned by the family of our protagonist, Lily (played by Anya Taylor-Joy who, between this, Split and The VVitch, is making a name for herself as a genre icon) In fact at times it harkens back to those 1980s adventure films where the youthful heroes would have to work together to face monsters in a world seemingly lacking in the presence of adults (a genre gaining a resurgence after being so successfully aped by Stranger Things). However in this case the, often offscreen, parents maybe ARE the monster, or if not them, it's something lurking deep in the psyches of our troubled teenage protagonists.

Despite the stage-friendly script, first time director Cory Finley films the action with the subtle elegance befitting that of it's world of perfectly mown lawns and marbled sophistication. The action largely happens offscreen, whether we are focussed into trying to puzzle out the thoughts that are hidden behind the characters' often blank expressions or when our attention is drawn to details of light and sound such as waiting on the flash of a motion controlled security light, or listening out for the familiar ping of an instant messenger response or the sinister humming of a never seen exercise machine. His camera is as controlled and emotionless as his protagonists and it spends much of the time either observing the characters with detached curiosity or wandering through the endless rooms of Lily's sumptuous but empty estate as if searching through a Labyrinth expecting a terrifying Minotaur to appear behind the next corner.

That beast comes in the form of  Lily's bullish millionaire step-father, played with slimy arrogance by Boardwalk Empire's Paul Sparks. Our first glimpse of him is on a framed photo, proudly posing next to a dead lion, high powered, long distance rifle in hand, clearly marking him as the type of man who takes pride in 'achievements' that are as hollow and as cruel as he is. He is gloriously unlikeable but the film stops short of making it's allegiance clear. There are no heroes in this story and part of the interest it inspires is in trying to work out who exactly the real villain of the piece actually is?

Olivia, with her lack of feelings and casual disregard for human life, seems an obvious pick but, although she shows no compassion towards anyone she is also lacking in any spite or malice towards them. In her own weird way, with her blunt honesty and logical ethics, she sometimes appears to be the most likeable and even moral person in the film's heartless world. Lily herself may be the film's most disturbing presence. There have been many films where an attractive, moneyed protagonist finds themselves befriended by a psychopath who intends to usurp them but this film may be the first where it's the successful lead who seeks to become more like their new untethered acquaintance. In fact it may be the grotesque privilege that is enjoyed by these characters itself which is the true evil at the film's heart. We are constantly shown images of the many people working to maintain this world but none of them are allowed to become characters. Lily is surrounded by people who mow her lawns, paint her nails for her or pick up the rubbish that she simply drops behind her assuming it will be dealt with. These people, who no doubt are slaving away for their very livelihood, are never acknowledged by Lily or any other character. They are simply furniture. In this world, where people can be simply reduced down to the service they can supply, Olivia's uncaring nature seems a natural progression from that which is encouraged by those around her.

The downtrodden are eventually given some voice in the form of a frazzled, ambitious drug dealer who gets caught up in the girl's plotting. Tim, as played by the late Anton Yelchin giving the film's most engaging performance, is a charismatic lowlife with a particularly skuzzy past but who is full of bluster and idiotic self-belief. He mirrors Lily's delusions as, while she tries to display her life of enviable wealth and opportunity as a tragedy, he is busy trying to convince everyone that his rather pathetic existence is merely the first step of a glorious, impossible future. It's equally humorous and tragic and acts as a reminder that the world Lily and Olivia live in (a world where their murderous schemes make a disturbing amount of logical sense) exists entirely in a bubble separate from that of people with more urgent  and desperate needs.

Thoroughbreds is not for everyone's taste. With it's mannered tone and measured pace it could quite easily feel as emotionless and off-putting as it's brutish characters do. But for those willing to open up to it's skewed worldview you are rewarded with an engaging little piece of nastiness which asks questions about the true nature of evil, the value of human life and  leaves you wondering, if you could control your own emotional triggers as easily as Olivia does, just what you would be capable of.

Review by The Mogul.