Borderline

Jimmy Warden's directorial debut, Borderline, attempts to fuse a home-invasion thriller with dark comedy, but the result is a tonal mess that never quite finds its footing. The film, set in the 1990s, follows a pop star (Samara Weaving) whose mansion is invaded by a delusional, sociopathic fan (Ray Nicholson). While the premise has potential, the script oscillates wildly between genuinely tense moments and jarringly misplaced attempts at humor, often undercutting the very suspense it tries to build. Nicholson delivers a committed performance, channeling a certain unsettling charisma, but the character is too cartoonish to be truly menacing. Samara Weaving is, as always, a magnetic presence, but she is often left to react to the film's chaotic and nonsensical events. Eric Dane is largely wasted in a supporting role. The film's biggest flaw is its inability to decide what it wants to be, resulting in a confusing and ultimately unmemorable experience.

Is it worth watching? No, it's a frustratingly inconsistent film that fails to live up to the promise of its cast and premise.

Borderline certainly has its moments, especially in the first and second acts, with events unfolding at a rapid pace and characters getting established. I could easily buy Samara Weaving as a 90s pop star (who needed to sing a lot more in the film), Ray Nicholson as a romantic stalker-sociopath (man, this guy's got the presence and the "killer" smile!), and Eric Dane as a bodyguard (somehow, the protagonist?). Alba Baptista also gets a notably wacky role. The performances are pretty good, the lighting choices are great, and the colour palette is interesting. And oh yes, I really enjoyed the soundtrack.

What doesn't hit a home-run, for me, is basically the watered-down third act (..even when there are enough stabbings and some darkly funny moments). The film desperately needed more of Ray Nicholson than the rest, but the man simply chews up the scenery whenever he's present. The showdown between Samara Weaving and Alba Baptista was enjoyable. It's just that the film can't entirely stick the landing in terms of its tonality, thereby not ending up as memorable given the potential we see early on. Also, they didn't give the romance angle (between Sofia & Rhodes) any real build-up, and it ends up looking weak as hell.

This film starts out okay, with a great cast, decent acting, and a premise that one feels might be a pretty entertaining black comedy... but the whole thing doesn't really amount to anything.

The writing here feels improvised, like random wacky and edgy ideas are being thrown into a blender to hopefully result in a crazy modern cult favourite.

You can almost hear somebody wetting themselves at jokes that your uncle might tell at a party that no-one laughs at, or like an SNL sketch that never made the cut and was not broadcast.

The confidence in this material to produce and release this film seems as delusional as the title character.

It's probably not as bad to other viewers as it is to me, but sometimes disappointment in something I thought was going to be great feels like I'm being ripped off or something.

Not the best, far from the worst. But in the age where everything is being recycled and there seems to be an utter lack of creativity, this was something a bit clever. Its focus on mental health was done in an intentional way, and the 90's styling and music was a nice addition. Overall, decent movie to pass the time and if you're looking for an Oscar award winner well this isn't it, but just some 90's glam fun and a quirky unique film then this could be for you.

I love Samara Weaving, and I'm happy to see Alba Baptista gaining space in an international production, but not even that saved Borderline from being a frustrating experience. For 90 minutes, all I could think was: "what the hell is this?"

The film tries to be an eccentric thriller with touches of dark humor, but it completely fails to balance the genres. There's no tension, no coherence, not even a solid script. It's a mess of scenes crashing into each other, as if the story is always on the verge of making sense but then refuses to follow a logical path.

The biggest problem is this lack of focus. Borderline seems to want to be everything at once but never commits to anything. Some moments suggest an intense thriller, while others try to lean into absurd comedy, but nothing really works. The humor falls flat because it lacks timing and impact, and the suspense never actually builds up, making it hard to feel engaged in the story. When it finally seems to find its direction, it quickly loses itself again, as if it's afraid of taking itself too seriously.

That said, I can't deny that Samara Weaving and Ray Nicholson carry the film on their backs. She continues to showcase impressive versatility in her roles, and he delivers a fantastic performance that makes me believe he'll become a major force in the industry in the coming years.

Another positive is the soundtrack, which, while not enough to save the film, adds a few moments of atmosphere. But overall, Borderline is an experience that won't appeal to everyone. It had all the ingredients to be a fun and unpredictable thriller, but instead, it's an exercise in patience, kind of stupid and never quite sure of what it wants to be.