- Director: Alex Russell
- Writer: Alex Russell
- Stars: Archie Madkwe, Théodore Pellerin
REVIEW
Every generation has the thing that they’re known for: Boomers yell at you to get off of their lawn, Gen X drinks water from the hose, Millennials received trophies for every single thing they ever did and Gen Z is too soft. But here’s the thing about Gen Z that they never get enough recognition for: they have never known a world without tech being in every facet of their lives from the moment they wake up until the moment they fall asleep. They are the first ones to truly grow up in the world of social media and they are also the ones who are literally living with the consequences of that. Lurker, playing at Fantasia International Film Festival, is the feature debut from writer/director Alex Russell, and the film takes an unflinching deep dive into this very real problem. What happens when you’re weaned on the notion that social clout is more important than personal values?
Matthew (Théodore Pellerin) works in one of those clothing shops that obscenely overcharge you for a hoodie when Oliver, a quasi famous pop star, walks in with his entourage. Quick to f ind a way to appear cool to anyone around him, Matthew starts playing some music that grabs Oliver’s attention and this is all it takes for Matthew to get an invite to hang out later. Making him seem even cooler is the fact that Matthew pretends he has no idea who Oliver is when that couldn’t’ be further from the truth. This seemingly innocuous lie allows him to quickly ingratiate himself into Oliver’s inner circle that is comprised of nothing but Yes Men who are all very protective of their own spot within the group.
Archie Madkwe (Midsommar, Saltburn) expertly conveys Oliver as an easygoing guy who seems oblivious to the amount of back biting and ass kissing his entourage employ simply to maintain their hanger-on status. Oliver is no dummy, though, and he absolutely sees what goes on around him, but he’s far too invested in himself and his outward appearance to actually care about anyone else. Really, it’s a toss-up between him and Matty when it comes to who is the biggest asshole in the pursuit of admiration from the public at large.
After various cringe inducing moments wherein Matthew works overtime to emerge as The Coolest Friend Of, he takes it one step too far and is unceremoniously dumped. It’s obvious that this is Oliver’s pattern, but Oliver never planned on someone as thirsty as Matthew. Pellerin (There’s Someone in Your House) turns in a star-making performance as a guy who will do anything to cling to his modicum of fame gained simply by being in the orbit of someone who has almost made it. Even this amount of tenuous adoration is enough for him to concoct illegal schemes that can have life ruining consequences for everyone involved. Matthew goes from kind of odd and clingy to straight-up scary and psychotic. And he’s more than ok with that.
Lurker begins like a spring afternoon daydream come true and slowly escalates into Single White Male utilizing nothing more than sly glances and awkward body language to illustrate just how dangerous Matthew has become. Culminating in some jaw dropping moments of emotional desperation, writer/director Alex Russell gets to the heart of the insidiousness of social media and some people’s unrealistic view of what friendship means in this time of likes, shares, comments and being famous simply for being famous.
Played at Fantasia International Film Festival
Lisa Fremont
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