Review: Fair Play

Image courtesy of Netflix.

If people still gathered around water coolers - hell, if people even went to offices anymore - "Fair Play" might be the movie they'd be arguing about in that setting. Set in the cutthroat world of hedge funds, the film follows the story of a couple who work at the same firm - but are keeping their relationship a secret due to company policy - and intend to get married.

However, a promotion for one of the characters - which was believed to be in store for the other character - sets the duo on a path of destruction, well, at least the crumbling of their relationship because while one of the pair's star begins to rise, the other's plummets, threatening to take both of them down.

The film begins as a romantic drama set on Wall Street, but by its end it feels as if it's in thriller territory. From the start, it's a bit kinky. Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) are analysts at the financial firm and, as the film opens, they are keeping their relationship a secret from their boss, Campbell (played ruthlessly by Eddie Marsan), but also from their parents.

As the film opens, they are at a wedding, where they sneak off to have sex in the bathroom, despite Emily being on her period. They exit the party looking like, as Luke puts it, they're leaving the scene of a murder. Emily hears a rumor at work that Luke will be named as the next PM at the firm, but she soon finds out that it is in fact she who will take over the high-pressure role.

Luke is obviously disappointed, but at first he acts supportive, although he engages in subtly passive aggressive acts, such as withholding sex or making comments about her not being assertive. He later takes it up a notch by noting that she dresses "like a cupcake" and appears to insinuate that late-night meetings with her bosses have a sexual nature to them.

When Emily attempts to intervene at work by talking Luke up with Campbell for other higher positions, he makes it clear that he is not impressed with her fiance's work. The arguments start to become more unpleasant and Luke begins to engage in self-sabotaging acts - a scene in which he pledges his loyalty to Campbell in his office is even more cringe inducing than that scene in "Swingers" when Jon Favreau keeps leaving messages on a love interest's voicemail - before considering acts that will sabotage both members of the couple.

The film paints a grim picture of this line of work, especially the rampant sexism involved in being in a mostly all-boys club. If the scene in which a group of men tell disturbing college sex stories in front of Emily doesn't unsettle you, I'd be willing to bet that Campbell's response to Emily when she makes a bad call on some stocks likely will.

Does "Fair Play" get a little over the top in its finale? Yeah, you could argue it does. But the great chemistry - both in its attraction and repellant forms - between the two leads is palpable, and the picture keeps the viewer on the edge of their seat as if it actually were a thriller. For a first-time feature director, Chloe Domont shows a lot of promise and exhibits impressive mastery of the form.