In a plot that would make any vacationer anxious, and in the “not too distant future”, novelist James Foster (Alexander Skarsgård) and his wife Em (Cleopatra Coleman) are suckered into a crime that develops into an additional crime during a getaway at a luxurious resort.  James, who becomes the most guilty, is given the choice to opt out of his execution if he pays a lump sum of cash for a clone to be made of him to die in his place.  Once this option is presented, James’ curiousities run rampant;  catching the interest of a secret group who have given themselves to a life of crime and mischief.

While the resort itself could’ve been more grounded in reality (sort of like how last year’s Barbarian tricked so many movie goers), Infinity Pool establishes an easy access point for the audience and then, effectively, slowly works its way down towards the darker corners of this story.  The screenplay is reminiscent of David Lynch’s Blue Velvet, and how a seemingly idylic setting is stripped down to its corrupt core.  Here, instead of the lead characters pursuing a mystery, the mystery pursues them;  suggesting an uncontrollable aspect to this very bizarre movie.

Skarsgård and Coleman are good together, but Infinity Pool is taken to a whole new level when Mia Goth (X, Pearl) becomes more present.  Goth’s beguiling performance is the key to the film’s tension as her character, Gabi, gradually reveals how manipulative she has the ability to be.

As a critic (and as a movie goer who remembers details to an absolutely obnoxious degree), I always enjoy watching filmmakers improve based on their previous effort.  The latest example being Infinity Pool’s writer/director Brandon Cronenberg, the son of legendary Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg.  Brandon Cronenberg’s previous flick, Possessor, featured some incredibly-made practical effects that were powerful enough to make audiences uncomfortable, even queasy.  But, the film didn’t have much substance and it primarily felt like a vehicle for Cronenberg to “show off” what he could get away with – from violence to sexuality.

With Infinity Pool, Brandon Cronenberg successfully cracks the code behind finding longevity in his material.  By creating the film’s environmental aspects first (locations, atmospheric tones), he finds a good fit for his strengths as a visual storyteller.  He certainly could show more self-discipline by shortening or removing hallucinatory sequences, and by also being less gimmicky and pornographic with his “uncut” versions.  But, creatively, he is headed in the right direction.

Infinity Pool Uncut is now playing at Toronto’s TIFF Bell Lightbox.

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Addison Wylie: @AddisonWylie