Thoroughbreds * (2017, Olivia Cooke, Anya Taylor-Joy, Anton Yelchin) – Movie Review

Writer-director Cory Finley’s 2017 directorial debut Thoroughbreds, a twisted dark comedy thriller, is a thoroughly unpleasant piece of work, as are his two main characters, Amanda and Lily, posh, idle rich Connecticut teenagers, who dangerously revive their old friendship. Friendship is normally a good thing, right? But if you put together two teenage girls with psychopathic tendencies, that isn’t such a good thing.

It is hard to get into these characters as they are so unsympathetic. There is not a sympathetic character in sight. It is very dark and depressing.

Olivia Cooke in Thoroughbreds (2017).

Running slowly, Thoroughbreds fails on both the dark comedy and thriller fronts, and is all boring talk between the two girls, and nothing happening. It runs like a tedious stage play, so it comes as no surprise that it was originally written for the stage.

Though they both look – and are – too old, Olivia Cooke and Anya Taylor-Joy play the emotionless Amanda and the doting Lily very well.

Thoroughbreds may recall other movies in this vein – Heathers, American Psycho and especially Heavenly Creatures (1994) – but that is to this film’s detriment.

Anton Yelchin (1989–2016).

It is further depressing as the last film of Anton Yelchin, playing a small-time drug pusher pulled by blackmail into the girls’ evil scheme to kill Lily’s frosty and controlling emotionally abusive stepfather (Paul Sparks). Sparks is effective too, as is Kaili Vernoff as the remote mother Karen.

Impressive acting apart, Thoroughbreds is a long seeming 92 minutes and the droning score is no help either.

Anton died at 27 on 19 June 2016 when his parked Jeep rolled backwards on his steep driveway outside his LA home.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Movie Review

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com

Anya Taylor-Joy plays doting Lily in Thoroughbreds.