SPOILER WARNING: The following article gives away the twist from Strange Darling, so proceed with caution if you have not seen the new 2024 movie yet.
Now available on VOD, the new horror movie, Strange Darling, has been hailed as one of the best horror movies of 2024 and also received praise from Stephen King, calling it “too clever to spoil.” Unfortunately, I cannot say I agree with that but there is a chance I could have if not for the overzealous marketing. Allow me to explain…
I Guessed Strange Darling's Twist Long Before I Even Saw It
Strange Darling stars Willa Fitzgerald and Kyle Gallner as two people whose one-night-stand evolves into a deadly cat-and-mouse game. It sets you up to believe Gallner’s “The Demon” is a serial killer and Fitzgerald is the victim before revealing she is a notorious murderer called “The Electric Lady” and he is a cop pursuing her after she fails to do him in.
With all due respect to admirers of the twist, I can’t be the only one who saw it coming, right? For decades, people have told stories setting up one character as the villain before revealing you were rooting against the hero all along. However, I believe there is a chance that I could have adored this bait-and-switch had the bait not been so eagerly and indiscreetly dangled in front of me by the film’s marketing.
The Twist Should Have Never Been Hinted At In The Trailer
I typically avoid movie trailers as best I can, but the first time I caught wind of Strange Darling when I happened to see the trailer at a movie theater when I saw the new A24 horror movie, MaXXXine. I was honestly intrigued by the preview but also a little wary of its very telling review blurbs.
For instance, in the trailer, Amylou Ahava from Nightmarish Conjurings is quoted as saying the film “defies expectations” and a warning from Fitzgerald’s collaborator (and one of my favorite filmmakers) Mike Flanagan urges audiences to “go in blind.” That is certainly how I would have preferred to experience the film but this very teaser robbed me of that chance.
The Strange Darling trailer is just one of many that attempts to attract interest by hinting at the mere fact that there is a twist. It admittedly worked on me but also negatively impacted my experience watching it as it prompted me to theorize the reveal, and I turned out to be correct. This sort of achievement might be satisfying for some audiences but it is certainly not for me.
Still, Strange Darling Is One Impressive Thriller
Putting my frustration over the climactic reveal aside, I have nothing but great things to say about Strange Darling. Writer and director JT Mollner crafted a thoroughly absorbing chase movie that keeps the tension high as a kite, with much credit to the film’s deeply necessary non-linear narrative, which the filmmaker fought to keep.
It is also a visually entrancing experience, shot entirely on 35mm film (as an opening credit proudly states) by cinematographer (and also producer) Giovanni Ribisi, whom you might know better from the Saving Private Ryan cast or as Phoebe’s half-brother, Frank, on Friends. Really bringing the material to life are the modern horror movie icon Gallner and, especially, Fitzgerald, putting in a dazzling, boldly devilish, and potentially career-defining performance.
I hope you have seen Strange Darling before reading this, because if you haven't, that would mean I am now the reason you might find the film disappointing. On the other hand, if I can still find plenty to admire about it, maybe this is the kind of passionatel-made thriller, like The Sixth Sense or Psycho (which I first saw long after knowing the ending), that is largely built around its twist but does not necessarily live or die by it.
