There is an element to this film reminiscent of the delightfully ironic House of Games (1987) in which the tables get turned unexpectedly and bitingly by the victim. Otherwise, this film gives us a view of humanity and human relationships that is hardly laudable. In House of Games, the heroine is a likeable person, and her table turning against the bad guys seems all the more justifiable for that reason. In this film, however, the heroine is no more likeable than those whom she seeks to get `even' with.
Increasingly, that temper seems to be creeping in to contemporary films. The clear distinction between good versus bad is becoming blurred between bad versus worse in this type of film. Perhaps that's what they mean by `Pushing the envelope,' except that it only gets pushed in the direction of more nihilism, where all that matters is who can out-fox whom. As a result, the `cleverness' of this type of film fails to leave one with a satisfying reason to care about what happens to the characters. They're just a bunch of self-absorbed rich folk trying to outsmart each other.
Increasingly, that temper seems to be creeping in to contemporary films. The clear distinction between good versus bad is becoming blurred between bad versus worse in this type of film. Perhaps that's what they mean by `Pushing the envelope,' except that it only gets pushed in the direction of more nihilism, where all that matters is who can out-fox whom. As a result, the `cleverness' of this type of film fails to leave one with a satisfying reason to care about what happens to the characters. They're just a bunch of self-absorbed rich folk trying to outsmart each other.