“Strange Darling” (2024) is one of those films where the less you know, the better. Instead of learning anything specific about its plot, let’s look at some of its other details. Right before the film begins, the filmmaker tells us it is shot entirely on a 35 mm film. Those who appreciate this style have another reason to look forward to it. Besides, these days, it is much costlier to shoot on film than on digital especially if you need to go through several takes.
The decision to shoot on film comes with caveats. Especially in an indie production, the entire crew must aim for precision in the fewest takes. Considering all the long takes and elaborate tracking shots in “Strange Darling,” it deserves even more praise. Beyond its storytelling approach, the film impresses us with JT Mollner’s direction and Willa Fitzgerald’s brilliant central performance.
Spoilers Ahead
Strange Darling (2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:
Written and directed by JT Mollner, “Strange Darling” is a crime thriller told in a non-linear format. It is divided into six chapters and ends with an epilogue that takes place roughly over the span of a day. The film deliberately arranges the chapters in a different order to play with our expectations and pre-existing notions about its characters and their archetypes.
What happens in ‘Strange Darling’?
“Strange Darling” has six chapters and an epilogue at the end. The film presents its two lead characters as The Lady and The Demon, played by Willa Fitzgerald and Kyle Gallner, respectively. Let’s look at the events in the order the film presents them.
Chapter 3: Can You Help Me? Please?
The film follows The Lady (Willa Fitzgerald) driving an old car, and The Demon (Kyle Gallner) follows her. Eventually, she leaves her car behind and starts running on a near-empty farm with a wounded ear, terrified for her life. She wears an all-red uniform that makes her appear like either a patient or a worker. The Demon follows her with a shotgun, determined to kill her. Soon, she loses his sight and crosses a fence to find a sign of life around.
While walking through a series of loudspeakers, she reaches a house and knocks on the door, crying for help. Inside, she meets a married couple, Genevieve (Barbara Hershey) and Frederick (Ed Begley Jr). Genevieve stands with a taser, presumably worried about this wounded stranger rushing toward their house. Still, she and Frederick offer help to The Lady.
Chapter 5: Here, Kitty, Kitty…
The Lady realizes that The Demon is near Genevieve and Frederick’s house. So, she hides herself inside a chest freezer. Soon, The Demon walks in and looks throughout the house for the lady. He goes through every possible nook and cranny to find her. As he walks through the kitchen, we see Frederick’s dead body lying on the floor in a pool of flood. The Demon shoots all the boxes inside the house to check if The Lady is in any of them. Eventually, he reaches close to a chest freezer and thinks of his next course of action as The Lady starts to panic. Eventually, he shoots the box, leaving her unconscious.
Chapter 1: Mister Snuffle
The Lady and The Demon meet for a one-night stand at a remote motel. Before entering their motel room, the two converse in his car. She talks about her fears related to such sexual adventures. As a woman, she worries whether the man she goes out with ends up being a killer. Once that doubt is out of the way, she sets up the terms for their BDSM sex play. She wants him to be dominant and assertive while they have sex. Besides, she wants him not to stop even if she says so. In case she gets uncomfortable, she will use a safe word.
The Demon gets anxious about this proposal, but The Lady offers her consent. He reveals he was briefly an actor once. So, he agrees to act accordingly and take the next step. Eventually, they enter the room, and he handcuffs her to the bed. However, he cannot satisfy her. So, she talks down on him, which hurts his ego. He brings her back to the bed and behaves nothing like his worried self. She gets terrified and says her safe word. Right after, he uncuffs her and apologizes. The Lady reveals she was only pretending to be scared and is instead aroused.
Chapter 4: The Mountain People
Before The Lady knocked on their door, Genevieve and Frederick had their weekend breakfast. Once The Lady appeared, Genevieve worried about her intentions but invited her in. The Lady revealed her terrifying situation. As Genevieve walked away to find medicine for The Lady, Frederick offered her breakfast. He suggested they call the cops to help her.
So, by the time Genevieve returns, The Lady stabs Frederick to death. She lets go of her earlier façade and expects Genevieve to obey her to survive. Genevieve reveals she and Frederick are not just hippies but also doomsday preppers. As she walks The Lady toward their safe space, The Demon arrives outside their house. So, Genevieve runs away to save her life. The Lady runs back inside the house and hides herself in a freezer.
Chapter 2: Do You Like To Party?
After saying she is aroused, The Lady rejects The Demon’s sexual advances. She says they should do cocaine before moving ahead. He snorts the drugs, not realizing she secretly dosed him with ketamine to incapacitate him. He tries to run away, but she drags him back inside. She carves the letters ‘EL’ on his chest with a knife. She steals his wallet while he lies on the bed, near-unconscious to realize he is a police officer. Worried, she returns to kill him. Instead, he shoots her in the ear and ruins her plan. Scared, she runs away from the motel.
The Demon gets his act together and starts driving to find The Lady. She reaches a nearby hotel and rushes in, seeking help. The manager sees her miserable state and decides to call the cops. It angers The Lady, who kills the manager almost immediately. Then, she asks the present hotel employee to undress and steals her clothes and car. Then, she flees in that car, wearing her uniform.
Chapter 6: Who’s Gary Gilmore?
After shooting The Lady unconscious, The Demon handcuffs her to the freezer. Then, he calls his police partners, Pete (Steven Michael Quezada) and Gale (Madisen Beaty), to the crime scene for further procedure. He returns to the freezer to find The Lady awake. He sits next to her as she talks about her wish to die like Gary Gilmore, an infamous serial killer who notoriously demanded the implementation of his death sentence. She also admits that she briefly liked The Demon. Soon, she sprays him with a bear spray and bites into his neck, which kills him in no time.
Strange Darling (2024) Movie Ending Explained:
Will The Electric Lady’s Killing Spree Finally Come to an End?
After killing The Demon, The Lady gets out of the freezer, still handcuffed, processing all that just happened in her life. Soon, Pete and Gale appear outside the house and start looking for The Demon. The Lady hears them and starts sobbing for help. After crossing Frederick’s dead body, Pete and Gale find the bloody mess left by The Demon and The Lady. Pete realizes that The Demon is dead. Then, he and Gale start speculating what exactly happened at the scene. Gale notices The Lady’s poor state, from her wounded ear to her handcuffs and her pants, and feels bad for her.
Gale believes The Lady is the victim whereas Pete isn’t sure about it. Nonetheless, Gale convinces Pete to uncuff The Lady and help her get treated. They take her to their car and start driving. Shortly after, they see Genevieve scared about a vicious female killer. As she looks toward the back seat, The Lady shoots her in the head with The Demon’s stolen gun. Then, she reveals herself as the infamous ‘Electric Lady’ serial killer. Since Gale showed her mercy before, The Lady allows her to run away but orders him to keep driving. During the film’s epilogue, The Lady orders Pete to stop the car to think of her next course of action.
As they stop for a moment, Pete asks The Lady about her intent behind the murders. She says she does not see humans but the devil in her victims. Moments later, she shoots him to death and walks out of the car. Wounded, she stops another car asking for help. The driver carries The Lady back to her car and offers help. Once inside the car, The Lady takes out her gun to shoot the driver. However, the driver also takes out the gun and shoots The Lady. While The Lady keeps bleeding, the driver calls the cops, telling them she is bringing The Lady to them.
Strange Darling (2024) Movie – The Final Word
“Strange Darling” works because of its clever interplay of identities and deception. The night begins with the couple agreeing to play parts as a dominant male and a submissive female. However, these equations keep changing throughout the night as the two learn new things about each other, whether personal details or behavioral traits. The film keeps showing us things in ways that do not offer us a complete picture. So, every step of the way challenges our notions while leading us on its nightmarish cat-and-mouse chase.
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