Borderline assessment: Movie is a bit uneven however options implausible performances from Ray Nicholson and Alba Baptista and a riveting opening.
PLOT: Follows a dangerously persistent stalker (Ray Nicholson) who invades the house of a ‘90s pop superstar (Samara Weaving) with grand delusions of a wedding. With her life on the line and help from her loyal bodyguard, she must escape the stalker’s sinister grip earlier than they tie the knot
REVIEW: Samara Weaving is a staple of the horror style at this level. It’s not a matter of if she’ll star in a brand new horror film, it’s all the time when. As a result of there are few actresses which have proven the style as a lot love as Weaving, and followers have returned the favor. Now, she’s taking up a much less flashy function and permitting the actors round her to actually shine. Borderline rides the road between extra than simply broken personalities, and skirts so many genres, it virtually takes on the identical high quality of its stalker lead. And as such, it might show tough to discover a huge viewers.
Borderline is a story of a person, Duerson, hopelessly in love with a pop star named Sofia…leading to him stalking her and routinely making journeys to her residence. Fortunately Duerson is caught, however when he escapes from a psychological hospital, his true plan can lastly be set in movement, with the top aim being a wedding to Sofia. As you possibly can guess, issues don’t go nicely for anybody in Sofia’s orbit, as Duerson proves to be fairly persistent. And there’s an oddly likeable facet of him that makes the occasions all of the extra confounding as a viewer. I used to be clearly on Sofia’s facet, however I nonetheless discovered myself rooting for Duerson resulting from his charisma.
Samara Weaving’s Sofia is a self-obsessed musician who comes throughout a bit uninteresting because of the personalities surrounding her. She’s extra of the straight man right here, permitting the others to go loopy round her and intensify their great performances. It means her function is a bit much less showy, however she nonetheless rocks it. I used to be additionally very impressed with Eric Dane, who performs Sofia’s bodyguard. The narrative falters a bit when his household will get concerned, however Dane does an ideal job by all of it. The introduction between he and Duerson is the most effective scene within the movie, and units up the narrative brilliantly.
Ray Nicholson is completely phenomenal in Borderline to the purpose the place I really feel like this can be his popping out social gathering. He performs Duerson as somebody who’s so misplaced and delusional, but nonetheless manages to be likeable. Mockingly, I’d even say there are shades of his father’s efficiency as The Joker current. There’s an exceptional showcase second for him that jogged my memory of a shot from Unusual Darling the place we see Willa Fitzgerald undergo a spread of emotion. Similar to that scene, this looks like the primary time we’re actually seeing the actual Duerson, and it’s a showcase for Nicholson’s appearing means.
Alba Baptista comes into the film like a freight practice, along with her character Penny perhaps much more unpredictable than Duerson. Whereas he clearly plans issues out, Penny acts on impulse and may change her thoughts immediately. She looks like much more of a menace than the large cousin (Patrick Cox) resulting from her being an absolute psychopath. There’s a second with a bit of fireplace that cements her as one of many craziest ladies in all of cinema. There must be a psychological ward named after her.
Author/Director Jimmy Warden (who can also be Weaving’s husband) makes his directorial debut right here and does an honest job. I’m not fully satisfied that the movie wanted to be set within the 90s, because it may virtually be modern-day with the way it’s introduced. Cell telephones all the time complicate horror movies, so I perceive that facet, simply looks as if the 90sness may have been extra on the forefront. There are some dumb moments like the facility going out and being defined away with a easy “They were supposed to fix this weeks ago!” Or the random duet between Weaving and Baptista that goes on manner too lengthy. It’s stuff like this which actually holds it again from being actually nice and makes for an uneven expertise.
Borderline doesn’t fairly attain its potential, but it surely nonetheless has loads going for it. Splendidly psychotic performances from Nicholson and Baptista actually give this the movie its id. The opening is completely spectacular and units up the film completely. It simply loses that momentum and struggles to get it again exterior of brief bursts till the ending, which does handle to work as an ideal bookends to the chaos.
BORDERLINE IS PLAYING IN THEATERS ON MARCH 14TH, 2025.
