Not sure how to spoiler tag so if I need to do that please let me know how.
I really liked this movie. I didn't know much about it going in and highly recommend it that way for anyone else. However for anyone reading this that hasn't seen it (apparently you don't care about spoilers), know that this is graphically violent thriller, and there's a pretty intense scene that could be a sexual assault trigger for some.
Right off the bat when they started us off in Chapter 3, I knew that things were not as they seemed. I think most people will be able to guess fairly early on that the "victim" is actually the hunter and the "hunter" is actually the victim here simply because the nonsequential storytelling is a tipoff. In less capable hands, this would be a gimmick that cheapens the movie. But it was executed so well I don't even mind that I could see the twist coming.
The director, JT Mollner, wanted this to be a movie that was primarily felt, and he succeeded. I was viscerally uncomfortable in the rape scene that turned out to be consensual role play, and I wasn't even sure it was consensual because they faked us out with the mock disappointment with the choking early on! When she said her safe word I exhaled with relief. I felt angry at how the Lady played on the wounded female tropes, and especially angry at the female deputy for not listening to the older male cop. But then I realized I would have probably done the same thing she did, seeing a bleeding, handcuffed woman with her pants down, so I couldn't be too mad. Mollner does an excellent job creating tension between the story as it plays out challenging a lot of modern gender sensibilities.
The cinematography was fantastic, and I was surprised to learn that actor Giovanni Ribisi was Director of Principal Photography for this movie. Excellent use of color, contrast, and focus. It may not pay as much as acting, but he has talent and I hope he keeps this up.
Speaking of acting, the two leads were flawless. Willa Fitzgerald showed an incredible range, from victim, sexpot, insane killer, etc. Kyle Gallner has a believable, quiet intensity, with flashes of sexy charm but also murderous rage. I expect to see a lot more of both of them. Their characters are smart and the emotion-driven choices are pretty believable for the most part (I'm also factoring in the drugs).
There's little details that are fun to contemplate, like the juxtaposition between the scene of Chapters 1 and 2, the Blue Angel Motel, and Gallner's character's name, the Demon. This name, by the way, is another great misdirect, as it is prominent in the opening credits but only later do we learn that he's named so because the Lady is crazy and thinks she sees and is killing devils.
All in all, great movie, highly recommend and I can't wait to watch it again so I can have all the context when I watch the first half again.
Ramen. ๐