Stoker (Park Chan Wook)

Stoker (Park Chan Wook)

I find thrillers a mixed bag. I went through a period in the later 90s reading Jill Thompson and Easy Rawlings and several other procedurals—an attempt to be more immersed in noir. I loved studying Hitchcock, but he is a benchmark that flooded a lot of film theory at the time, from the chair to Quentin Tarantino.

But for every grifter, there is an erotic thriller starring Bruce Willis and some other action guy I’ll cast while red sepia tints cover everything, leaving me feeling lacking in both thrills and eros.

Stoker, while not reaching the heights of ‘Gone Girl ‘, manages to steer clear of the lows of ‘The Specialist ‘. The film’s stylistics are truly compelling, and it’s refreshing to see that it doesn’t fall into the trap of clichés. The stark imagery is a stark contrast to the morality, which is anything but. It’s a whirlwind of a teenage girl and the moral ambiguity we find ourselves entangled in. 

It’s a film full of imagery and introspection, and the dating to convey emotion while within such stillness comes and conveys so well. It is ahrd to care for the flat line dialogue and automata style repression, but its hard to not be drawn by the film, and its gives the wilderness and hunter motif such an excellent stand

The character of Charlie is drawn from all the best moments, from Psycho to Night of the Hunter. You can see how charismatic he is, as many are in that age. Nicole Kidman is also totally convincing as an estranged wife and now widow; you can see the appeal to her.

But the role of India, trained to be a hunter, where is her agency, and how can she be empowered? Her school situation is stark and mundane, and you can see that she is not some genial person exploited but a predator lacking, or rather biding her time for opportunity.

The film does have its share of suspense, and the end is a culmination of sharp and horrific revelations. It’s a sound and taut drama, not a cosy crime, but a chilling drama that’s perfect for the approaching nights. Its haunting imagery will surely leave a lasting impression.

One to look out for