"SHARPER" (2023) Directed by Benjamin Caron #sharper #debut #movies #spoilerfree

"Better known for his directorial TV specials for English illusionist Derren Brown and numerous TV series including Skins, Sherlock and The Crown, Benjamin Caron’s debut feature length film from the directors chair is my favourite of the year so far. OK, 2023 has only been in existence for 51 days hence far and I’ve seen a lot of dross so far officially released in this calendar AND I found the fifth and last chapter utterly redundant and the constant reveals were all too easily signposted and far too obvious but, but, but, I couldn’t take my eyes away from this flawed gem.

Commencing immediately with a definition for the title of the film as a noun and “one who lives by their wits”, I was immediately reminded of Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction but it is to the screenplay he penned for True Romance that I was immediately drawn to in the film’s beautiful opening chapter, his film Reservoir Dogs and the character of “Mr Orange” as the template for the stories our five characters tell both themselves and the outside world they are attempting to con and with more than a hint of Danny Boyle’s Trance and a dash of Good Will Hunting, I was clearly appropriating a whole heap of praise on a film that I found too easy to unravel yet couldn’t stop watching and crucially, rather enjoying despite its flaws".

The above is an opening extract from my spoiler free film review of "Sharper" I originally penned and published to my Medium blog site on 20th February 2023 and which can be read in full via the handy link below:

https://medium.com/@stephenblackford561/sharper-2023-e4cf356e3471

This review also forms part of my "essential film reviews collection" and all 7 volumes can be read for free if you have an Amazon Kindle "Unlimited" package:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0C4HZSTTH?ref_=dbs_p_pwh_rwt_anx_b_lnk&storeType=ebooks

https://www.patreon.com/TheBlackfordBookClub
https://www.paypal.me/TheBlackfordBookClub
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