A first class sting drama, THE STRANGER is a constantly intriguing look into a painstaking undercover police operation.

The film opens with the shot of a mountain, a monolith sheathed in vegetation. A voice over talks meditatively. Visually, it’s an invitation to climb this mountain, seek what may be concealed in the thick bush, and reach the peak having conquered the camouflage.

Basically, THE STRANGER is a film about a relationship between a pathological liar and a professional one. A tightening knot of tension, lies and false realities, as the central figures are drawn from opposite sides toward inevitable resolution or collapse.

What will it be?

Elliptical and enigmatic, THE STRANGER is strange, a strange film about what is left behind in the wake of violence, and the structures that protect us from it and about the people who take on the professional responsibility to stand on the precipice in the name of policing.

Writer director Thomas M. Wright takes us into undercover police operation procedure that seethes with unease and an unsettling, reality shifting ambiance, exploring the potential Jekyll Hyde dynamic that can bloom when pretend becomes perilously close to reality.

The ill effects of living a parallel life are subtly explored, and the twisting of trust examined. Who are you really when you submerge yourself into a counterfeit persona.

Joel Edgerton as Mark, the deep cover cop and Sean Harris as Henry, the suspected perpetrator, are riveting, both propelling the piece with an internal combustion of high octane.

They are surrounded by an impeccable supporting cast of characters skillfully creating a milieu of paranoia, distrust, and deceit. Jada Alberts is particularly impressive as a dogged detective, an instinctive investigator with indelible diligence.

Through mood and tone, the production mints mundanity into compelling coin, making THE STRANGER a film you won’t want to make a stranger.