Last Updated on March 16, 2024 by Phil Nobile Jr.
One film that caught me off guard at the Chattanooga Film Fest last month was Stephen Vanderpool’s Tearsucker, an indie thriller concerning a woman working to recover from a traumatic event, and who crosses paths with a murderous psychopath whose particular fetish (hint: it’s in the title) drives him to seek out and exploit women online.
Seeing that typed out, I have to say it does no justice to the film’s unique vibe, nor to its pivots from humor to horror to genuine pathos (shifts in tone which I described as “positively Korean”), nor the cumulative effect the movie had on the audience with whom I viewed it. A packed house in Chattanooga at times had no idea where things were headed, but they hung on for dear life, alternately cheering and gasping at both the film’s narrative turns and its performances. (Actress Danielle McRae Spisso, as the lead’s ride-or-die best friend, has a moment that caused one audience member to actually stand up and holler at the screen in approval. The movies!)
No single clip from Tearsucker is going to give you the full picture of the experience, but we’re here with TWO. Will two clips give you the full picture? Of course not! But this twin taste gives you a better idea of what you're in for.
The first clip delivers the film’s central premise, as the inscrutable Tom (played by Sam Brittan, who's also the film’s writer) goes out of his way to be hurtful to his date Jenny (Emily Yetter), driving her to tears and then… well, you’ll see.
The second clip, while light on overt horror (which, trust me, the film delivers), gives you a glimpse of the movie’s fantastic central performance by Allison Walter, as well as a snapshot of the film’s central themes.
In the film, Lilly (Walter) goes a bit viral by posting a wine-fueled vlog in which she tearfully recounts the recent death of her abusive partner. The next day her notifications blow up, as friends and strangers alike reach out to offer support and comfort. One of those strangers is Tom, the eponymous Tearsucker, who spends his days online watching self-help videos to help him approximate human behavior, and looking for women whose tears can feed his kink. It’s not a particularly subtle metaphor for the kind of asshole who slides into the DMs looking to prey on women’s vulnerability, but I think you'll find the direct nature of the premise serves the overall experience.
Lilly’s emotional video, full of tears as it is, lights Tom’s fire, and he’s soon pursuing her IRL… and that’s where things get downright harrowing.
Tearsucker hits VOD and digital (including iTunes, Apple TV, Amazon, Vudu ,Google Play, and Xbox today!
