Stalker thriller ‘Tearsucker’ will make you by no means need to date once more [CFF 2023]

If the measure of effectiveness in a horror or thriller film is making my pores and skin crawl, Tearsucker nails it. The story facilities round absolute human monster, Tom, who can solely really feel pleasure whereas ingesting the tears of others, or a minimum of the tears of girls. Tom haunts on-line self-help message boards and help teams in search of weak ladies. As soon as he picks a goal, he does a deep dive into their on-line presence with a purpose to uncover how greatest to make them cry–typically occasions portraying himself as a pleasant man who has additionally been via trauma himself. It’s exhausting to think about a extra sinister solution to go about courting. And so we watch as Tom sits, sweating, below a single light-bulb in search of the following sufferer on his laptop computer, which is the place he finds Lilly.

Lilly is therapeutic from a really abusive relationship. She works from house and spends a lot of her time alone. Her solely actual help system is her greatest good friend Deb who urges her to get again out into the world. Deb suggests she work out a few of her emotions by getting again into her vlog and speaking about her journey. The weak put up (fueled by late evening wine) will get her the very best numbers she’s ever had–and catches the eye of Tom. I think about we’re supposed to grasp that her desperation for connection makes it simple for her to disregard Tom’s many shiny pink flags, however that specific writing determination finally undermines Lilly as a powerful protagonist.

Lead actor Allison Walter does a fantastic job with what she is given as Lilly. She completely captures the damaged energy wanted for the character. Sam Brittan, who can be the author of this movie, does an equally nice job with Tom. A variety of the creepiness on this story comes from Brittan’s capability to change from a troubled man you’re feeling form of dangerous for to a fully disgusting predator throughout the blink of an eye fixed. The movie rests nearly fully on these two characters, so having the suitable expertise within the roles is vital.

Although this isn’t one thing I say typically, I do consider Tearsucker may have been a bit longer. By the point we get into the connection between Lilly and Tom, all the things feels barely rushed and it’s tough to consider she would let issues escalate on the tempo by which they do given her latest previous. After all, dangerous choices are key to nearly any good horror film, however the tempo at which Lilly strikes into clearly harmful conditions provides the movie a reasonably misogynistic and sufferer blaming tone that I definitely don’t consider was the intent. If we got a bit of extra time to see Tom manipulating Lilly’s feelings, the final word climax may need felt extra inline with what we learn about Lilly.

The place Tearsucker actually excels is in how repulsive Tom’s actions are. There’s a lot face licking, sucking tears out of handkerchiefs and hand towels, and up shut pictures of Tom’s mouth, thirsty for extra tears. Director Stephen Vanderpool packs the run time with uncomfortable shut ups and unsettling stalker-like spycam angles. Prefer it or not, the viewer turns into utterly immersed on this planet. There isn’t an abundance of gore and even outright violence, however when the crew makes an effort to creep you out, it’s extremely efficient.

Tearsucker had it’s World Premiere on the 2023 Chattanooga Movie Competition