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January 29, 2025The urge to feel like you’re a part of something can be very strong, and that’s particularly true when it comes to fame. Meeting a celebrity or, better yet, developing an actual relationship with one is something many seek to achieve but don’t ever expect to, and it also has the potential to get quite awkward. What starts as a meet-cute in a clothing store quickly turns into an extended case of not reading the room, pushing one already socially clueless individual to go to extreme lengths in Alex Russell’s Lurker.
Matthew (Théodore Pellerin) chooses just the right song to play to capture the attention of Oliver (Archie Madekwe) when the well-known singer comes in to the store where he works. He soon earns an invitation to Oliver’s home where his alleged job as documentarian often has him hanging around doing nothing, or completing menial tasks assigned to him by Oliver’s entourage. It’s an eternally hot-and-cold relationship that Matthew knows he wants to do anything to keep, even if he doesn’t feel like Oliver even knows or remembers he’s there half the time. While he often doesn’t say much and essentially just lurks, Oliver isn’t going to be so easily forgotten.
This film begins with a scene of intimacy between Matthew and Oliver as the former’s camera captures a personal conversation. Other moments like that do exist, but they’re not as frequent as they should be given the space Oliver occupies in Matthew’s mind. Based just on the way that his inner circle sits around, Matthew shouldn’t expect Oliver to be a reliable or present friend to him, but he’s obsessed almost from the start, and he’s willing to do anything and everything to remain by his side, especially if that means cutting out others he worries are getting close to him.
Russell’s past experience as a writer for The Bear and Beef bodes well for this film that is in many ways a dark drama but is filled with moments of laughter, particularly from the discomfort that ensues when Oliver’s entourage tries, or more often tries not, to engage Matthew and to figure out a way to make him go away. This is a deeply unnerving and unpleasant watch since Matthew is so clearly not tethered to reality, and he barely hides the eagerness with which he longs to be glued to Oliver and to feel like he is, as Oliver regrettably chooses to tells him once, his best friend.
The success of this film hinges heavily on Pellerin’s performance, and, fortunately, the On Becoming a God in Central Florida actor absolutely nails it. He’s likeable for the first few minutes of the film and then completely unbearable, and it just gets worse as the film goes on and reaches its climax. Playing someone so detestable and still making the film watchable is an impressive skill, and Pellerin delivers. Madekwe, who recently starred in a film with a somewhat similar premise, Saltburn, captures Oliver’s appeal and also the distance he creates when he’s not in the mood to engage. Havana Rose Liu and Zack Fox stand out in the supporting cast as confidantes of Oliver’s who clock Matthew’s shadiness almost from the start.
This film feels like a bit like a fever dream, with Matthew somehow still around even though he’s creeping people out and never taking a hint about how he could more easily blend into the background and not make himself an overly present pariah. Managing a character like that is a tough act, and even though it’s hard to watch much of this film because of the cringeworthy and worrisome nature of its story, it does work, and Russell shows solid promise for the future. This is a textbook example of how not to act if ever graced by the friendship of someone famous and an intriguing examination of how people act in uncomfortable, inescapable circumstances.
Movie Rating: 7/10