Stalker

You’ll be hard pressed to find a weirder, more warped film this year than Stalker, and the fact that it happens to be Irish should be something of a celebration. One part insanely dark psychological thriller, one part comedic surrealist exploitation flick, one part powerful kitchen sink drama; and while these three parts rarely combine into a satisfying whole, Stalker does show some new, experimental headings for locally made cinema.

Oliver (John Connors) is a seriously troubled homeless man, who experiences a moment of almost religious awakening, and decides only to do good from now on - or at least his version of good. Finding teenager Tommy (Barry Keoghan) in the midst of being bullied, Oliver protects him and decides to become his new best friend and guardian angel, whether Tommy wants it or not. Unfortunately, Tommy’s immediate family, including his small-time wannabe crime-lord Uncle Rudy (Peter Coonan), would rather keep Tommy involved in drug-smuggling and underage prostitution. See? We told you it was dark!

Jumping one moment from the harsh, stark realities of homelessness and drug addiction, to a madcap (albeit violent) comedy, to unnerving scenes of mental illness, it can be difficult to pin down exactly what kind of film we’re watching. This is something the actors seem to have trouble with too, with Coonan being deliberately OTT, when compared to Connor’s fearless performance, or Keoghan’s at times heart-breaking work.

There are other issues that stick out - a scene in a cinema smacks of self-congratulations, Oliver’s red-eyed POV seems like it would better suited in a scary alien movie, the score is at times a little too overbearing, the unsatisfyingly abrupt ending, but you can’t help but shake the feeling that there is something grander at work behind Stalker.

Yes, it’s far from perfect, and yes, it’s often so tonally messy that it’s difficult to know how to react to any given scene, but you’re left with the impression that maybe that was the point all along. Sort of like if Ken Loach decided to remake Hobo With A Shotgun, this definitely won’t be to everyone’s taste, and you’re never sure if you should laugh or cry, but you are guaranteed some kind of reaction.