Red Rooms offers the best kind of challenge for its viewers. Despite being impressed by the filmmaking, the writing, and the acting, we feel a relentless wave of dread as the film confronts extremely uncomfortable subject matter and an unreliable lead character.

Influenced by obsessive cultures of true crime and online anonymity, Red Rooms is centered around a high-profile and controversial trial. Alleged serial killer Ludovic “The Demon of Rosemont” Chevalier (Maxwell McCabe-Lokos, the writer/director of Stanleyville) has been accused of murdering three girls and video recording the torture leading up to their deaths. These videos were made available online within the elusive “dark web”. Select seats in court are made available to the public; attracting people like Kelly-Anne (Juliette Gariépy of Boost), who has been following Chevalier’s arc. Technically savvy and private, Kelly-Anne is determined to attend every day of the trial as she holds Chevalier in contempt with a curious gaze.

Kelly-Anne is a tough read; even if she gradually sheds her skin or offers some of her own perspective on the case. Gariépy, in a phenomenal and gutsy turn, seems as though she’s fulfilling her desires to portray a deeply complicated character. With her puzzling and provocative fascination dampening her intentions, audiences flip and flop between believing Kelly-Ann is genuinely concerned or a disturbed admirer.

With his latest film, writer/director Pascal Plante (Nadia, Butterfly) has crafted a meticulously-tuned courtroom drama that could be classified as a psychological horror. Some encrypted scenes turn our guts because Plante is so masterfully descriptive through vague imagery and audio. Other creepy moments that are more stark are far and few between but the confrontational nature is jut as effective as your typical “jump scare” (such as an unforgettable stare Chevalier gives Kelly-Anne in court).

When compared to Anatomy of a Fall, another unsettling and realistic courtroom drama, Red Rooms is a superior movie. Because the audience is given more control over the ambiguity of this story, such as how we perceive Kelly-Anne. Red Rooms is more gripping because of how the filmmaker wants to predict and match the viewer’s expectations. This movie may be chilly, but it’s incredibly involving, as well as one of the best films of the year.

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Addison Wylie: @AddisonWylie