Lurker was beforehand reviewed by us on the Sundance Movie Pageant. Having now performed Fantasia, Mubi will launch it theatrically this month.
PLOT: A retail worker (Théodore Pellerin) worms his approach into the internal circle of a rising pop star, Oliver (Archie Madekwe) and can do no matter he must with the intention to keep there.
REVIEW: Lurker is strictly the form of film I wish to see once I hit Sundance. I went in understanding subsequent to nothing about it aside from the truth that some people concerned with The Bear had a hand in it. Days earlier than its premiere, it screened for lots of the Sundance volunteers, which is normally one thing they do once they know they’ve an actual winner on their arms.
Certain sufficient, Lurker is a terrific mix of black comedy and psychological thriller, with it enjoying out as virtually an evil, demented model of Virtually Well-known. Like that Cameron Crowe basic, this follows the entree of a younger man into the internal circle of pop stars, though Théodore Pellerin’s Matthew is much from a wide-eyed harmless. The film begins with Oliver coming into into the fashionable boutique Matthew works at, permitting the latter to completely insinuate himself through the use of reverse psychology. You virtually root for Matthew, with him sharp-witted, humorous and initially gregarious. On the similar time, Archie Madekwe’s Oliver is charismatic because the pop star on the verge of a breakthrough. He surrounds himself with sycophants however says he desires somebody “real” within the internal circle.
As soon as Oliver’s fickle affections begin to wander, it doesn’t take a genius to determine what is going to occur to Matthew’s psychological state. Nonetheless, Lurker constantly pivots anytime it threatens to be standard or predictable. Author-director Alex Russell, who additionally labored as a author and director on The Bear and Beef, has made a phenomenally entertaining first characteristic, with this some of the memorable Sundance debuts since Whiplash. Expertly assembled, it appears prone to spark a bidding warfare, with it the form of film that would readily crossover to a mainstream viewers if dealt with appropriately.
Théodore Pellerin is paying homage to a younger Anthony Perkins in how he’s in a position to juggle a sweet-natured, boy-next-door form of vibe with a barely suppressed sociopathic aspect, making him some of the memorable display screen psychos in current reminiscence. Archie Madekwe additionally will get one other spectacular position after his turns in Gran Turismo and Saltburn, because the hyper-macho Oliver, whose performative aspect hides a vulnerability he feels the necessity to suppress. They’re properly supported by Havana Rose Liu as Oliver’s assistant and stand-up comedian Zack Fox as the top of his entourage.
Russell’s sense of tempo is pitch-perfect, with the 100-minute working time fairly disciplined, and the movie has the identical form of propulsive vitality one of the best episodes of The Bear have. One factor that can get folks speaking is how the movie depicts the shifting energy dynamic between Oliver and Matthew, with it reminding me at instances of this nice Joseph Losey film from the sixties, The Servant, which was a couple of parasitic butler who slowly took over his employer’s life. Lurker performs with the identical formulation however provides it a up to date flavour. It’s the form of film I come to Sundance hoping to seek out, and a movie I believe goes to attach with loads of our readers as soon as it comes out.
