ROK’s Flicks: Perfect Strangers

How do you feel when someone takes your smartphone and goes through it? Do you feel even a little bit uncomfortable, even if there is nothing earth-shattering on it?

We are all secretive to some extent, it’s in our nature. There is a saying: each of us has three lives… One public, one private and one secret. Once our lives lived in our memories, today they are on our sim cards!

On a warm summer Italian evening, a loving couple, Rocco, a plastic surgeon and Eva, a therapist are awaiting their long-time friends, three couples, to join them for dinner. Everything is in order: the first course is ready, the roast is in the oven and the table is set.

Before long, the group has arrived and they begin their feast. It is also the evening of a lunar eclipse, which is viewed intermittently throughout the evening.

During the dinner, Eva says that she is convinced many couples would separate if their respective spouses looked at the content of their mobile phones.

As one guest casually claims to be squeaky clean when it comes to secrets, the discussion veers towards all deciding to place their phones in the centre of the dining table (a bit like Russian roulette) and to share with everyone any texts, emails or phone calls they receive.

Clearly, this type of “truth or dare” game has no surprises for close friends who share everything with each other… or do they!

Many secrets are revealed and the stability of this group is shaken. Matters quickly become complicated as the messages reveal how little they really know about each other. This is the basic plot, and it is absolutely brilliant.

Now, the ending: After following a straight but tell-tale storyline for the most part, the movie changes its course in the final 5 minutes and offers you a twisted, very interesting ending that eventually makes it an even better movie than it was. A masterstroke from the director!

ROK’S FLICKS RATINGS: 4.5 glasses of bubbly

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