Sharper review: Julianne Moore & Sebastian Stan in a beautifully twisted New York noir of mystery and lies

See the handy Grifter drama sharper reminded me how rarely we come across this kind of clever cat-and-mouse game that might fall into the noir genre but really relies on immersion in a world full of characters revealing parts of their lives that change from moment to moment. This is the kind of film I find extremely difficult to review because the ultimate achievement for a viewer is to just watch it beat by beat without knowing exactly where it’s going and still be glued to the screen and trying to figure it out.

Almost any actual detail would warrant spoiler warnings, so just trust me. With an exceptional cast of actors who skilfully avoid betraying the ever-changing plots of their rugged characters, a smart and precise screenplay by Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka, and no-nonsense direction by Benjamin Caron (the crown) in a triumphant film debut, sharper remind you how much we’ve missed out on mid-range adult entertainment when things go right.

The best advice I have is to just keep going, even if the movie you think will emerge from the first few series isn’t the movie they made. We immediately meet Tom (Justice Smith), a lowly NYC bookseller who meets a customer (Briana Middleton) he clearly likes while showing off a first edition of Jane Eyre and help her find the perfect gift for her boss. Another chance encounter later that day leads to a dinner party and a budding romance. Soon the thrust of her new relationship changes a bit as she describes some financial issues that are overwhelming her at the moment. When he volunteers to rescue her, she resists but eventually agrees to a substantial loan.

Written in a non-linear style and separated by chapters indicated by character names on screen, the focus keeps shifting as we watch the events unfold and eventually intertwine as the story takes twists and turns and then vice versa. We meet Max (Sebastian Stan), a highly successful con artist who has a knack for making big bucks. Under his guidance, we meet Sandra (Middleton), a broken, drug-addicted young woman on probation. Pygmalion-Similarly, he transforms into someone else entirely while involving her in his wrongful grievances. It all eventually leads to his own family ties, with his mother (Julianne Moore) now in a loving relationship with Richard Hobbes (John Lithgow), a billionaire hedge fund manager whom he immediately insults as “old”, much to her horror.

It is these five characters who, in their own way, may not be who they appear to be, at least on the surface. All, except perhaps Hobbes, deal with some form of fraud in a way best left unsaid here. The film’s title can give us a clue if you know who a “grinder” is. Google it. But just when you get an “Aha!” For now, these filmmakers have other tricks up their sleeves.

Kudos to this great cast. First time producer Moore knows a good thing when she reads it and immediately grabs the screenplay blacklisted for 2020’s Great Unproduced Screenplays. As always, she dives into a compelling character and adds an extra dimension to it. Stan, who plays the crazy Max, spins excessively pam and tommy and another clever character at that Fresh with a performance that turns the hall upside down. Smith and Middleton manage to take each of their characters to multiple levels, with the latter a real star in the making based on what she does here. Lithgow is incredible – perfectly cast and once again at the top of his game.

New York City itself is an important cast in its own right, and a big thanks to cinematographer Charlotte Bruus Christensen, production designer Kevin Thompson, and editor Yan Miles for that. Clint Mansell’s cool score hits all the right notes, as does the song-filled soundtrack that captures the ever-changing stories.

Producers are Erik Feig and Jessica Switch for Bert Freundlich, along with Moore, Gatewood and Tanaka. Picturestart, FortySixty and G&T Productions are the companies involved in bringing this latest collaboration with A24 and Apple Original Films to the screen. It debuts in London today, opens on Friday with a limited theatrical break and begins streaming on Apple TV+ on February 17.