Daisy Edgar-Jones – looking increasingly like Anne Hathaway – stars in this proudly silly, wildly entertaining dating horror-thriller.
The Normal People star plays Noa, a jaded twentysomething who has been burned too many times by hook-up apps. Exhibit A: the opening scene in which a hilariously rude Brett Dier leaves early, takes the food home in a doggie bag without paying a cent, and departs with the words "stuck-up bitch".
Wandering through a Portland supermarket, Noa encounters Steve (Sebastian Stan), a charming chap who offers grapes that taste like candyfloss and goofy, self-deprecating jokes. They get together and, acting on advice from her carefree friend Mollie (Jonica T Gibbs, excellent), Noa puts aside her cynicism and inhibitions and heads off for a romantic weekend with Steve, only to discover that – dun dun dun – he's not only the biggest Chad of them all, he's a Chad with a terrible secret and murderous business plan.
Stay tuned for this year's craziest reveal and sternest cautionary tale. Fresh was written by Lauryn Kahn, formerly an assistant to Adam McKay, who produced the film. In keeping with the McKay brand, this is a clever, observant, politically aware, fun film that marks a sterling feature debut for director Mimi Cave. It is equally a solid genre effort, characterised by gory set-pieces, discombobulating scenarios, and welcome lashings of feminist revenge.
Comically twisting the source genre away from the concept of the Final Girl, Fresh celebrates female camaraderie, resourcefulness, and good humour in the face of monstrous behaviour. Stan makes for an enjoyable, maddeningly earnest villain. Charlotte Le Bon is splendid as a Stepford wife. Edgar-Jones seems initially a little young for the role of Noa, but she expertly keeps pace as the movie gets more outrageous.
