Sex and power are inextricably grafted together in the relationship between Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich), both rising star analysts for a Wall Street hedge fund. Which is fine, as long as both are on an even footing. But then Emily unexpectedly gets promoted, and Luke’s alpha male assurance shrivels, along with his libido.
The slick feature debut from TV director Chloe Domont (Ballers, Billions), Fair Play pitches a battle of the sexes in a cut-throat arena where one misjudgment can cost tens of millions of dollars. Wildly ambitious employees scan the office like expensively tailored meerkats, scenting danger in their colleagues’ successes. And Luke, face set in a grimace of a smile, chips away his girlfriend’s self-esteem with a drip-feed of doubts. It’s maliciously effective, up to a point: an enjoyably lurid piece of classy-trashy psychological warfare. Unfortunately, both the plot and the performances boil over in the third act, and the film loses much of its icily calculated cool.
In select cinemas now; on Netflix from 6 October
