Lurker: A Semi-Intriguing Approach to Celebrity Obsession That Follows a Simplistic Course (Blu-ray)

The Film:

Over the decades, films about obsession with celebrities have become their own niche sub-genre, with some of these films turning out remarkably well ("Misery," "Play Misty for Me"), and others being nothing but dull, shallow slogs ("The Bling Ring," "The Fanatic"). It's a rather difficult topic to tackle, particularly because it's another area that's been explored quite a bit, making it harder and harder to come up with something new or different to say about such extreme attachment. However, filmmaker Alex Russell believes he's found a new approach to the material with his debut feature "Lurker," in which we once again see that obsession getting out of hand. The question remains, will his tale be one that's able to utilize the premise well, or will we merely end up with another misfire with nothing to say?

The film primarily focuses on Matthew Morning (Théodore Pellerin), who works at a clothing shop in LA with his friend Jamie (Sunny Suljic). One day, a rising pop star named Oliver (Archie Madekwe) strolls into the store and connects with Matthew over their love of a song playing on the store's speakers. This gets Matthew invited to Oliver's show, which eventually leads to him becoming part of the gang, as well as Oliver's documentarian. As he gets closer and closer to the singer, contributing quite a bit to the new visual style for his music video, Matthew soon finds himself becoming obsessed with him, an obsession that becomes threatened as his former co-worker Jamie begins to work his way into the group as well. With Oliver's attention beginning to drift, Matthew must find a way to get it back, or risk losing the position he's come to enjoy.

"Lurker" begins much in the way you'd expect, by having its main character cross paths with a celebrity and slowly getting enfolded in their lifestyle, subsequently making them become obsessed with staying within the tightly-knit inner circle that surrounds them. To Russell's credit, this was a semi-interesting way to approach such a film, as we don't typically see the one who eventually becomes obsessed invited to be so close to the celebrity (usually it's more so seeing the impact of that obsession from a distance), so there was a fair amount of potential as to what could happen here with Matthew being given such incredible access to Oliver's everyday life.

That said, cracks begin to show quite early on in its attempt to tell its version of the tale. For starters, the set-up is pretty basic, which is to say that Matthew gets into Oliver's inner circle a bit too easily, making it come off as an extremely convenient plot device. From there, it follows a standard path that naturally has him becoming preoccupied with staying close to Oliver, eventually developing into mere petty jealousy when his friend tries to get close to him as well. For the third act, Russell sadly writes himself into a rather tight corner that he's unable to escape from simply because the story doesn't really have anywhere else to go at that point, leading to a bit of a non-ending that doesn't really resolve anything.

When it comes right to it, we find that Russell didn't really have a lot to say on the topic of celebrity obsession, curiously settling for a surprisingly simplistic story that doesn't hold much in the way of surprises or go in any particularly compelling directions. The premise did indeed hold a good amount of potential, as we don't typically see this type of approach, but with Russell being unable to utilize it, what we're left with is a strangely bland take on the subject that really needed a few more drafts to flesh out the story and characters to the point of giving the audience something more captivating to get engaged with. As is, it's simply an elementary exploration of the material that is unfortunately forgotten rather quickly.

Video/Audio:

"Lurker" comes to Blu-ray in a 2.39:1, 1080p High Definition transfer of excellent quality, presenting a beautifully sharp & clear picture throughout the film's entire 100-minute duration. The 5.1 & 2.0 DTS-HD MA audio tracks are decent for the most part, though there is a slight imbalance present in the sound mixing when it comes to the dialogue and some of the music, so some adjustments may be needed throughout. Overall, Mubi has done a fine job in both areas for the film's physical debut.

Special Features:

None.

Conclusion:

Alex Russell's "Lurker" takes a semi-interesting approach to the standard celebrity obsession sub-genre that has a fair amount of potential, but sadly settles for a rather simplistic course that involves a basic set-up, obvious developments, and a third act that gets the film stuck in a tight corner from which it's unable to escape, ultimately making for an exploration of the material that doesn't have much to say on the topic.

Score: 2.5/5

Now available on Blu-ray.

Follow me on Twitter @BeckFilmCritic.