Making its world premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival earlier this year is Fair Play. A romantic thriller set in the world of high-stakes finance, it stars Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich as a young couple who must navigate their relationship after a work promotion elevates one above the other. Writer-director Chloe Domont’s (Suits, Ballers) directorial debut aspires to leave audiences gripped with suspense.

On the surface, Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) are attractive, successful, lustful, and in love. It’s a seemingly perfect relationship, but one that they must hide. That, along with the news of their recent engagement since they work together at an affluent New York investment firm.

Their secret news, however, soon benefits from some good fortune. An opening at the company provides the opportunity for Luke’s promotion. The couple grows excited at the possibility, but a twist disrupts their plans. Their boss (Eddie Marsan) tells Emily that it’s she who the firm is promoting.

Emily breaks the news to a surprised Luke and even offers to help promote him from her new rank. Luke is initially supportive, but Emily’s new position creates a subtle distance between them. This all slowly weighs on Luke’s psyche, and the tension between them grows and makes for unstable, dangerous circumstances.

Writer-director Chloe Domont’s brisk and moderately suspenseful feature debut has a lot of winning elements. Its high-stakes finance world setting is feverishly exciting, making for a fast-paced energy and tension that grows as the story gets more dangerous.

The secret romance between Emily and Luke drives the film’s propulsive energy. The gender dynamics on display are also powerful and very perceptively shown. In this male-dominated world, Domont writes Emily into a situation that feels exactly like what a bitter man might internalize if they felt overlooked next to a female partner. It’s also another fascinating read on gender and power and weak men that is a fascinating part of the film (and, look for the reference to the female-asserting last line of Eyes Wide Shut here, too).

While Emily ascends to power, a once stoic Luke struggles to take this blow to his ego and starts spiraling into the world of internet self-help videos (that also recall the fragile male ego of Don’t Worry Darling). Now, without giving away the explosive (and awkwardly staged) ending, Luke does become our true villain, making for a riveting standoff between the two characters.

Ultimately, what holds Fair Play back for me is that the film didn’t lean into its genre elements even further. I think that would have been solved if it committed one hundred percent to make Emily the clearly defined main protagonist. Instead, Emily’s story is balanced with Luke’s perspective, so it’s something of a shared couple’s story until its climactic ending.

The appeal of Fair Play boils down to the chemistry between Phoebe Dynevor and Alden Ehrenreich. Theirs is one that feels exciting and dangerous. Dynevor is commanding and owns the screen in some very demanding scenes. Ehrenreich delivers an excellent performance, turning from charismatic to embittered and unraveling. Both are captivating at every turn, even when the writing fails to meet them at their level.

1h 53m.

This review was originally published on Jan 24, 2023, as part of our Sundance Film Festival 2023 coverage.