Sunday, February 11, 2024

Brief thoughts on THE LONG GAME (2024) SBIFF 2024


Modern film noir is a delightful must see.....

I'm going to keep the plot description brief lest I give anything away. The story concerns an out of work actress (Sekai Abení) who helps her boyfriend (Jackie Earle Haley) run a scam on a fading star (Kathleen Turner). Things become complicated when the women begin find they have a lot in common.

Based on the story "The Method" by Janet Fitch, this film is wonderful. A delightful throw back to the old film noirs, but with an updated twist or three, THE LONG GAME surprises as it refuses to do anything other than follow its own way. I love that the film takes our expectations and tosses them aside and just goes for it with a tale that grabs us and pulls us in and makes us go along on it's journey.

What makes this film work is the cast. The three principles are operating at the top of their game and we are so much better for it.  Sekai Abení in her feature debut announces herself as an actress to reckon with. The woman at the center of the story holds the film together with a firm hand. You would never believe that this is her first time out of the chute. I can't wait to see what she does next. Jackie Earle Haley is staggeringly good. Why in the hell isn't he in more things? He has to be one of the best actors working today and yet he isn't in all the big films. He's Oscar good. And then there is Kathleen Turner who chews the scenery, spits it out and then does it again. Wow. She is is having so much fun that it infects everyone in the audience. She is just so much fun to watch. Best of all, her chemistry with Abeni makes this film something glorious.

I had so much fun that as soon as I finished the film I sat down and wrote this review because I had to tell you about it.

The film just premiered so it maybe a little bit before you see it. That's okay, just put it on your list of films to see when it plays near you..

No comments:

Post a Comment