★★★★½

In a suburban Connecticut neighbourhood where Range Rovers line every extravagant mansion's driveway, wealth is nothing foreign to the families who live here. In a stunning directorial debut from Cory Finley, a girl who feels nothing (Olivia Cooke) and a girl who feels everything (Anya Taylor-Joy) find out exactly what can happen when actions don't have consequences in a world of privilege. Through a complicated bond rooted in a past childhood friendship, the two girls learn more about themselves and each other when they get caught up in manipulation and lies in this unpredictable and thought-provoking thriller.

Told in four 'chapters', the film's story largely centres around the rekindling of the friendship between Amanda (Cooke) and Lily (Taylor-Joy). Amanda's reputation around town has recently been tarnished, and her mother arranges tutoring sessions with Lily in an attempt to help reform her behaviour (although, it becomes clear early on that there might not be much to reform). The girls get off to a rocky start, awkward together after spending years apart, but soon begin to get closer with one another after Lily's abrasive and cutting stepfather (Paul Sparks) is introduced into the picture.

Thoroughbreds is fairly dialogue-heavy, but the luscious cinematography and haunting score balances it quite nicely. In a Q&A session following the screening, Finley (who also wrote the movie) stated it actually took its initial form as a play, but eventually felt that it would work best as a film format. The movie's theatrical roots are definitely self-evident throughout, but never does it feel like the filming of a staged play--some of its best moments are characteristically cinematic.

In a wonderful performance from Anton Yelchin (and what is tragically his last after his recent death at only age 27) as Tim, a shady drug dealer from the other side of town who swears in ten years he'll "run the game," themes of class struggle and inequality become apparent when the girls try to enlist him to carry out a task for them. Despite some of the elaborate undertones this film has, they are often delivered in a nuanced and brilliant way. This is largely in part due to the stellar and relatively small cast, each actor giving these extremely developed characters the life they each need.

But deeper within its exploration of wealth and class lies an interesting study of human nature and the complexity of its emotions. This is often done through the stark contrast between Lily and Amanda and their polar opposite emotional reactions to whatever life throws at them--there's a scene in the final act that perfectly encapsulates this, with Amanda passed out cold while Lily is crying in her lap, an adequate metaphor for their emotional capacities throughout the film. 

Thoroughbreds does all this while remaining entirely gripping and satisfying for audiences. It's a film you can still greatly enjoy without having to read too much into what it's saying--it'll do all the talking for you, and without being overtly in-your-face. The human heart is a funny thing, and with all its vigorous highs and desolate lows, Thoroughbreds effectively translates those complicated and convoluted feelings to the screen.