Door Mouse (2023)

Door Mouse (2023)

A neo-noir with a grunge comic style that almost hits its crime thriller mark

6.8

Movie

Canada
English
Drama, Mystery, Thriller
2023
AVAN JOGIA
Donal Logue, Famke Janssen, Hayley Law
101 min

TLDR

This might've been better as an actual comic.

What it's about

A comic book artist working at a burlesque club investigates the disappearance of her friend when the police and her boss refuse to take it seriously.

The take

Overlayed with comic-style illustrations and cynical narration, Door Mouse is a neo-noir that struggles to supplement its visual flair with tangible characters. The titular Mouse is a horror comic by day and works at a burlesque bar at night, but she begins to worry when one of her coworkers is missing. From there, the film is a grunge cat-and-mouse chase into the underbelly of sex trafficking in the city. And although the direction is solid, the quip-heavy dialogue falls flat from characters that aren't fully fleshed out enough to pull off the right amount of chemistry for a justice-revenge tale. Thankfully, as a debut film for Avan Jogia as a writer and director, he's proven he has a narrative style worth looking out for. 

What stands out

It's fair to say that Avan Jogia knows how to style and frame a film. Even though it feels like a melting pot of dark, dirty, grunge aesthetics, the look of the film, from the comic style to the wardrobe, is consistent, making for an arresting watching experience. His camera work felt confident, and with a heavy subject out the gate, he's proven that making bold, disruptive comes naturally to him.

Comments

Add a comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

More like this in

The Guilty (2018)

A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.

9.0

Forgotten Love (2023)

The stunning third take of the classic Polish pre-war melodrama

7.7

Breaking the Waves (1996)

Lars von Trier breaks his rules in the tearjerking first film of the Golden Heart trilogy

8.1

Hilary and Jackie (1998)

Two sisters, bound by music, is torn by genius and fame in this tragic, heartwrenching biopic

7.6

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

The Breaking Ice (2023)

Three lost souls find a warm connection in this wintry, delicate drama

7.0

Lust, Caution (2007)

A wartime spy falls for a collaborator in this erotic espionage drama

7.3

A Silent Voice (2016)

A coming-of-age movie that circles around friendship and the atonement of a boy

8.7

Problemista (2024)

Dark, weird, poignant, and funny, this debut feature by Los Espookys star Julio Torres is a modern parable of the American Dream

8.6

Cleaners (2019)

A weird and wonderful coming-of-age anthology featuring classic moments in 2000’s Philippine high schools

8.4

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.