Recently acquired at the Sundance Film Festival by Netflix for its global distribution, the film fairplay it begins as a dream romance. Alden Ehrenreich (Alone: A Star Wars Story) and Phoebe Dynevor (Bridgerton) play a couple who overflows with mad love at every second. The party they are at ends with a marriage proposal. One of those that in the movies arise unexpectedly and almost impulsively, but naturally. However, without giving too much away, the scene also involves a surprise discovery, a montage that suggests a puzzling atmosphere and a lot of gore. We don’t know yet, and while no one gets hurt, these elements are not random. What seems like a curious anecdote for the couple will soon be revealed as a narrative omen of things to come.
fairplay is the debut feature film by Chloe Domont, who until now had developed as an episode director for series such as billions, suit Y clarice: business world dramas and thriller cardiac. The film explores what happens when the company where they both work frees up a position that both feel deserving of.
A movie like fairplay it’s a natural fit for Domont and an elevation of the tropes and conventions he developed in episodic television.
Unlike those narratives (which tend to be more focused on the plot and what will happen next?), fairplay it is also an interesting study on power dynamics, ego, ambition, and differences in perception and standards between men and women.
All this punctuated by the choice of Domont, who also wrote the script, to place his thriller on Wall Street. That is an environment that Hollywood has already shown us as a place where being human, empathetic and generous is a weakness. Who knows if the reality of that world will be like that. But, at least in the movies, there are few candidates for a healthy, loving romantic partner.
Thus, the tape little by little spins a plot that keeps us ambiguous about the intentions of its characters. And although sometimes he opts for the obvious rather than the subtle, fairplay portrays (once again?) a lesson that should already be extremely clear: professional ambition cannot be above your partner. And less on Wall Street.
fairplay It will hit Netflix sometime in 2023.
J. Ivan Morales Writer, film director and editorial director at his friendly neighbor film publication, Cine PREMIERE. He will never give up hope for a second season of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip and Firefly.
