Olivia Cooke stars as Amanda, an emotionally disturbed young girl who reconnects with her former friend Lily (Anya Taylor-Joy). As their bond strengthens, they eventually hit upon a plan to take out Lily’s intolerable stepfather (Paul Sparks). Together, they blackmail a small-time drug dealer (the late Anton Yelchin) into abetting them in their plot.
Thoroughbreds is a witty and darkly humorous comedy thriller that gets a lot of mileage from its pitch-perfect performers. The chemistry between Taylor-Joy and Cooke is palpable, and lot of the fun comes from watching them bouncing morbid niceties off one another. (Some of the sardonic dialogue and deadpan delivery is reminiscent of Heathers.) Anya is quite good as the rich girl who thinks she can get away with murder. Her waifish appearance and sad eyes suggest she’s hiding something sinister. Meanwhile, Cooke is excellent as the disturbed girl who uses her emotionless coldness to her advantage. Yelchin is a hoot too in one of his final roles as the clueless dolt who quickly finds himself in way over his head. Sparks is also well cast as his character is less a wicked stepfather and more of an insufferable twat waffle whose banal veneer is sometimes unsettling.
Speaking of unsettling, I will say the graphic discussion about Amanda’s past deeds makes for some truly creepy stuff. While nothing is explicitly shown, the suggestion is more than enough for you to paint a pretty nasty picture in your mind. I won’t spoil it for you, but if you are in any way sensitive when it comes to animal mutilation, you might want to hit the mute button during this scene.
Thoroughbreds is kind of talky and a little slow at times. In fact, it probably would’ve felt like a three-character play in some spots had it not been for the cool camerawork, which is full of long steady cam tracking shots. The pulsating percussion-based score is also quite good. The ending is predictable too, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t well executed.
All in all, Thoroughbreds crosses the finish line in style.
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