The Stranger Parent Guide

Mark (Joel Edgerton) is an undercover officer with Australian police, trying to get to the bottom of one of the state’s largest unsolved child abduction cases. His suspect is a man known as Henry Teague (Sean Harris), who has been placed at the site of the disappearance of the boy in question. The police have been unable to find either a better suspect or strong enough evidence to arrest him so Mark and other undercover officers are trying to convince Henry that he has been inducted into a large-scale criminal operation with the ability to change identities and hide crimes – but only if they know about them.

Stringing Henry along is a dangerous game, but police don’t have another choice if they want to crack the case. Eventually the stress of undercover work and the time spent with Henry takes its toll on Mark, who needs to find a way to cope. The investigation is only going to get more difficult as police close in on Henry’s disturbing past…

Slow, deliberate, and realistic, The Stranger is a very compelling look at the world of undercover police work. Inspired by a true story, the film has changed enough details to avoid criticisms over accuracy while maintaining a high degree of realism. Conversations, events, and characters all feel grounded and authentic. Unlike other undercover cop movies I could name, there are no dramatic firefights, no interrogations at gunpoint, no gruesome homicides or dismembered bodies. There’s actually no violence on screen at any point in the film, apart from a car accident which does not involve any of the main characters, and which doesn’t show any injury.

In fact, the film doesn’t show much – which is why it feels so grounded. The “Mr. Big” style of police sting mostly involves talking to people, creating elaborate deceptions, and then pumping the suspect for information. Most of this film takes place in cars or restaurants and involves watching characters swear and smoke while investigators wait for trickles of information that can enable prosecution.

The Stranger is too slow and laden with too much profanity (92 sexual expletives) to be a family film, but this is far from the gory murder investigation movie you might have expected. Older audiences with an interest in careful, tense thrillers will have a good time, thanks to a smart script and a subtle performance from Joel Edgerton, contrasting with a remarkably unsettling performance from Sean Harris. You can definitely find more exciting crime thrillers, but I’m hard pressed to think of one that manages to provide thrills without a whole lot of action embellishments. If you’re looking for gunfights, keep looking.