Thoroughbreds (2017) - Corey Finley

A striking social critique masquerading as a "black comedy", Corey Finley's Thoroughbred is centered around two upper-class teenage girls living in a lavish suburban Connecticticut, individuals who find their once defunct friendship rekindled due to a shared interest in alleviating themselves from certain problems in their life - mainly, Lily's controlling step-dad.  Thoroughbreds' excels both thematically and narratively due in large part to its characterizations, presenting the audience with two characters in a way that intrigues but never completely reveals their intentions.  Amanda is the oddball, the sociopath whose ambivalent nature towards everyone and everything leaves her detached.  She is a character that is brutally honest about her feelings, or lack there of, being completely void of the facade of politeness expected in general social exchanges.  Lily is more what one would expect from an upper-class teenage characterization, an individual whose buttoned-up, proper existence has begun to wear thin.  Struggling to deal with a stepdad who refuses support her both financially and emotionally, Lily has developed severe disdain for this man.  It's through these two characterizations where Thoroughbreds' social critique manifests itself, as the film slowly subverts one's expectations, revealing a stark commentary on the current state of American society, one in which selfish intentions drive success more than empathy.  While it's Amanda who intimidates and concerns the audience with her lack of general emotion early on, the film slowly reveals that Lily is the character who is truly dangerous, an individual who is completely driven by self-interest.  Thoroughbreds establishes the step-dad as a character who is unredeemable, presenting him in as a malevolent force, one who only brings oppression and pain into Lily's life,  slowly and methodically destroying the bond shared between Lily and her mother.  Presenting him as simply, the rich, evil prick early on, Throughbreds completely manipulates the audience, who unbeknownst  to them is only seeing this man solely through the perspective of the self-absorbed Lily.  We eventually are broken free of this perspective to reveal LIly as a spoiled, selfish character, one whose spite for her step-dad is directly related to his inability to coddle her and financially support her to a fault.   His desire for her to forge her own path, void of his influence both financially and socially, is the real reason for their constant confliction, as Lily expects him to support every decision she makes, no matter what, something which it seems her mother was willing to-do before remarrying.  While Amanda may speak in a way which frightens people, due to her general ambivalence towards the existential nature of life; it's Lily who is the real predator, the wolf in sheep's clothing, the individual who can cause real harm; as she is the individual who is driven, first-and-foremost by her own self-interests alone, an individual who wields both her financial and social capital for personal gain. Through this narrative bait & switch, Lily transforms into a sinister force, becoming a parable, or better yet, the manifestation of late capitalism and the current problems centered around the oligarchical system in America, one in which financial welfare is expected not earned by those of privileged status.  The conclusion of the film perfectly encapsulates the allegorical nature of this tale, one which finds us reintroduced to a version of Lily whom seems to be successful and flourishing personally,  with her privileged, self-involved nature being the perfect catalyst for success in  the dog-eat-dog nature of contemporary, American life.  A film sold very much as a black comedy from a marketing perspective, Thoroughbreds is feels more like a pitch black social commentary, one in which its comedic intentions never disrupt or cheapen the more introspective nature of its story, featuring comedic moments which never feel forced for the mere sake of cutting through the philosophical nature of its commentary on the darker aspects of contemporary human life.