Review of The Gift (2015) by Filmphonic — 07 Aug 2015

Versatile Aussie actor Joel Edgerton (Warrior, Exodus: Gods & Kings) writes, directs and stars as the weird high-school kid all grown-up and taking a creepy interest in an old school acquaintance and his wife as they move back to their home state.

‘The Gift’ sets up and builds like a traditional “stalker” thriller using the bearing of gifts as a mechanism for the creepy character to build mystery and tension while developing the narrative, but Edgerton refreshingly subverts the sub-genre by blurring the line between the perpetrator and the victim as the story develops and we start to learn about the character’s motivations.

Aside from a couple of tense choreographed moments that will make you squirm in your chair, ‘The Gift’ is not your typical thriller featuring a slow build-up and tone that may not be for everyone as the most gripping element of the film becomes the truth itself, but as the true nature of the all the characters becomes clearer you are held by what will happen to them and how the main couple’s relationship will end up.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of ‘The Gift’ and what separates it from many a modern thriller is a moral grounding that refuses to bow to a black & white social conscience, the line between the “antagonist” and “protagonist” is blurred enough to let the audience decide if what eventually happens is justified or not, the film is a subtle but engaging critique of ruthless corporate America and indeed the winner-takes-all society that leaves a trail of destruction and where the winners often bear the hallmarks of a psychopath while the losers are left broken people.

The Bottom Line….

A “Reap what you sow” psychological stalker revenge-thriller, ‘The Gift’ subverts the genre and blurs the line between the “perpetrator” and the “victim” while delivering a good little socially conscious indie thriller, an accomplished directorial debut from the rising triple-threat talent that is Joel Edgerton.