Stoker

If you have seen any of director Chan-wook Park’s films (Oldboy, Thirst), you know that he is one creative and tremendously sick bastard. This is his English-language debut, and it’s just as deranged and disturbing as his prior offerings. Mopey-faced Mia Wasikowska plays India, a girl just turned 18 who has lost her father (Dermot Mulroney) in a mysterious accident. Her mother (an excellent Nicole Kidman) invites India’s strange uncle (Matthew Goode) to stay at the house, and it’s slowly revealed that he has a few “problems.” The filmmaking here is visually impeccable (some of the dissolves are mind-blowing) and the performances are solid. The story itself is a little too sleepy at times for me to rank this amongst Park’s best works. Still, this twisty film has many memorable moments, and I’m hoping Park has many more films to come.