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FOLLOW HER
Director: Sylvia Caminer Cast: Dani Barker, Luke Cook, Eliana Jones, Mark Moses, Cristala Carter MPAA
Rating: Running Time: 1:32 Release Date: 6/2/23 (limited) |
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Review by Mark Dujsik | June 1, 2023 Gradually revealing a clever hook, Follow Her never figures out what to do with its self-referential premise. Ultimately, the screenplay by star Dani Barker abandons the notion for a pair of climaxes—the second one more disappointing than its predecessor. Barker plays Jess, who makes videos for an internet service that, if it doesn't sell outright pornography, has content that's certainly adjacent to it. Jess' specialty is answering online classified ads that superficially appear innocent and harmless but are actually solicitations for some sexy and/or kinky stuff. She brings along a collection of hidden cameras to record those encounters, blurring out the face of the other participant and rising through the ranks of the site's other performers. Her most recent video, though, accidentally reveals the face of her mark. Despite the warnings from viewers that her unwitting co-star has had his identity exposed, Jess decides to keep the video online. After all, it's the most popular one she has ever made. That, along with Jess' shaky relationship with an attorney father (played by Mark Moses) whom she depends on to pay her bills, is the extent of any background for the character. It's enough, perhaps, because the main plot has Jess meeting a mysterious stranger named Tom (Luke Cook), who posts an ad asking for help from experienced writer to complete his screenplay for a psychosexual thriller. Thinking that's code, Jess answers and arranges a meeting with the man, who might actually be writing a screenplay—and using this meeting as the inspiration for what happens. With all of that established, Barker and director Sylvia Caminer carry on with a battle of wits of sorts, with Tom either revealing himself to be a threat or becoming very involved in some improvisational method and Jess trying to keep a step ahead of whatever scheme he has in mind. Much of the story's early intrigue relies on the two main performances, with Barker tapping into the cunning nature of the character to such a degree that the dynamic feels like a genuine mind game and Cook being charming enough that Tom's actual motives remain a mystery until they're spelled out for us. The guessing game of what's really happening here is engaging to an extent, but inevitably, the truth must be disclosed. That's when things start to collapse, as Barker's script explains a bit too much—yet, somehow, not enough for the reality to be believable—and those characters transform into clichés that undermine their initial strengths. Follow Her arrives at one ending that's generic but ambiguous enough to leave us with some tantalizing questions. That the movie's epilogue sets out to answer them with yet another standoff, in which the stakes are less convincing and the process only feels determined to set up a sequel, is a final and mostly unnecessary disappointment. Copyright © 2023 by Mark Dujsik. All rights reserved. |
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