The Tutor Review

PLOT: Follows a tutor who, after being assigned an unexpected task at a mansion, finds himself struggling with the obsessions of his student, who threatens to expose his darkest secrets.

REVIEW: In many ways, The Tutor feels like a Bryan De Palma movie in both its storytelling and editing choices. There’s a huge mystery at the center of several smaller mysteries and the characters are hard to pin down. But also like a De Palma movie, there are plenty of logic leaps and strange tonal shifts. But if you’ve avoided the trailer so far, I’d continue to do so as this absolutely gives away a bit too much. As someone that knew nothing going into the film, I couldn’t believe some of the twists and turns.

Garret Hedlund is playing against type here, including having quite the (shaved) receding hairline. I couldn’t stop staring at that glorious hole in his hairline. Whoever came up with that choice deserves a raise. Along with his more gaunt frame, his appearance really sells the subtle scumbag angle. Whether it’s side glances towards an underage girl or the rumblings of an affair, it’s clear that he isn’t the nicest guy. This is too bad because Victoria Justice‘s Annie is portrayed as the sweetest girl on the planet. So get ready to have many conflicting feelings as the story takes you on quite the ride.

Noah Schnapp will be known to most as Mike from Stranger Things but his role here proves that he should be able to shake that label with ease. His character of Jackson is unsettling from the jump as he’s clearly going through a lot. With several outbursts, followed by bouts of crying and then turning on a dime, it was hard to know what he would do next. Being a bit of a wild card, Jackson brings a bit of that “I’m going to ruin your life” flair that I love so much in psychological thrillers. His unpredictability and control of the situation make for a very interesting character.

Unfortunately, the movie suffers from a lot of coincidences and happenstance. How was Jackson able to pull off as much as he did? Having a rich father only goes so far as a plot device and probably needed to be used a little less. The final reveal is not one that I saw coming, but I think that’s more because it doesn’t feel like the movie was setting up that kind of movie. This feels intentional, as the pivot towards the end is aided by the somewhat predictable journey up to that point. This isn’t just some rich kid who wants to mentally screw with his tutor, there’s something much more nefarious beneath the surface.

Ultimately, The Tutor is an intense mystery that will have you guessing till the end. An uneasiness follows most of the movie as there’s something off about both our protagonist and our would-be antagonist.  Whether you like it will probably depend on whether you liked some of those classic stalker films of the 90’s. This has a similar vibe while wrapped in a 2023 coating and fun performances from all involved. While there are sure to be some that will spot the twist well in advance, the journey it takes you on is definitely worth signing up for.

The Tutor is IN THEATERS ON MARCH 24th, 2023.

Garrett Hedlund

GREAT

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