My quick rating - 6.8/10. Border (2018) is one of those flicks that caught me by surprise, as it quietly whispered, “You have absolutely no idea where this is going.” Seriously, that’s the best way to go into this one.
Going in, I thought that it would be a thriller of a sort, maybe something dark and involving crime with a supernatural aspect. Instead, what I ended up watching was a peculiar, oddly charming, yet extremely disturbing romantic thriller. This is not your typical “customs officer catches the bad guy” movie. Not even close.
The premise alone is fascinating. Tina (Eva Melander) works at border control and has an extraordinary ability. She can literally smell guilt, fear, and hidden emotions on people passing through customs. It’s a great hook, and the film uses it brilliantly right away. Watching her sniff out suspicious travelers like the world’s most intimidating bloodhound gives Border an immediately eerie charm. It’s almost darkly funny at times. Imagine trying to sneak contraband past someone who can practically smell your bad decisions.
Then along comes Vore (Eero Milonoff).
The moment he appears, Border (2018) does a complete u-turn into something completely out of the ordinary. Tina’s never-before-failed intuition faces an equal opponent. She senses something is off, but not in any way she can understand. From here, all the mysteries of the movie unravel bit by bit.
And that’s really where Border shines.
I suggest going in as blind as possible. The less you know, the better. The reveal works so well that talking about it will take away everything that makes it great. It continues to peel back the layers until it evolves from being just another thriller into a weird yet thought-provoking one.
That said, the pace is rather slow. The movie moves into areas where it appears to have nowhere particular to go and ends up walking around in circles in its efforts to get there. In some cases, the sequence seems to last longer than necessary, and occasionally the plot becomes disoriented.
The part that stands out is just how unapologetically weird this movie is. And that isn't just Tina's appearance. Border fully commits to its concept, and because of that, it stands out in a sea of more formulaic thrillers. It’s almost haunting. A little romantic, a little disturbing, and not something you forget five minutes after the credits roll.
It is not what I was expecting, and believe me, that is a good thing. If you do plan on checking out Border (2018), avoid spoiler-heavy reviews. This is one of those films where the mystery is half the experience.
