Hot off the heels of their new engagement, thriving New York couple Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) can’t get enough of each other. When a coveted promotion at a cutthroat financial firm arises, supportive exchanges between the lovers begin to sour into something more sinister. As the power dynamics irrevocably shift in their relationship, Luke and Emily must face the true price of success and the unnerving limits of ambition.
In her explosive feature debut, writer-director Chloe Domont weaves a taut psychological thriller, unflinchingly staring down the destructive gender dynamics that pit partners against each other in a world that is transforming faster than the rules can keep up. Dynevor and Ehrenreich deliver commanding performances as a couple whose romance hardens into ruthlessness when stakes climb higher than even the volatile fortunes of their clients. With razor-sharp precision in its writing and tense cinematography, FAIR PLAY unravels the uncomfortable collision of empowerment and ego.
(Synopsis from 2023 Sundance Film Festival program.)
“A good thriller will ramp up the anxiety with each step as it hurtles towards its conclusion, and FAIR PLAY does not let up until the very end, offering a twisted and toxic tale of a couple driven to the brink by a shift in power dynamics.” —Therese Lacson, Collider “This is a thoroughly modern movie, one that takes conversations our culture has been having for years and runs them through a gauntlet… FAIR PLAY argues that for the ultra-ambitious, capitalism breeds sickness — one that can shatter every other aspect of a person's life. Luckily for us, the results are electric and perversely thrilling.” —Ben Pearson, Slashfilm “Ruthless, and ruthlessly entertaining… With a delicacy that more genre films aiming to tackle weightier topics could afford to emulate, Domont cooly constructs a contemporary story about how a gendered disparity in finance and power can wreck a seemingly successful relationship.” —Benjamin Lee, The Guardian