With corporate warfare, love, and everyday life on the line, Fair Play is coming to theaters for a limited run. The Netflix movie featuring Phoebe Dynevor and Luke pits two coworkers and lovers against each other in a financial firm. But what they don’t expect is one decision is going to change everything about their lives, their relationship and their futures.
The movie starts off innocently enough, Emily and Luke are rivals at work but secretly in love outside of office hours. They thrive on the possibility and excitement of getting caught but never want to jeopardize their careers in a financial firm where the gains can be life-changing. When an opportunity to advance opens up, it’s rumored the job is going to Luke. But when it actually goes to Emily, the couple’s relationship dynamic changes not only at the office but at home as well. What once was a loving and caring relationship goes someplace dark and could have disastrous endings for both of the young lovers.
Neither character is fully innocent in the movie and in their actions in the relationship, which at times can make it hard to choose a side in who is actually right and wrong. But watching the movie as a woman may hit a bit differently than for a male viewer. While Emily is supportive and excited about Luke’s possible advancement, his attitude towards hers goes beyond jealousy and highlights what women often deal with in a professional setting. The movie does a great job of showing a realistic look at what happens to women once they reach a certain level within a company. The rumors of her only receiving her position because of sexual favors and not based on her own merit and hard work, while a man who is barely passing through his day-to-day workload expects to be promoted beyond her. The attitude towards Emily from her coworkers, her boyfriend, and even her boss, is hard to watch yet it’s a reality for a lot of women who reach a certain level within a corporate setting.
The movie is intense, and it plays out in a very short time frame. While Emily has to deal with the high stress at work and at home, she’s also dealing with a stereotypical overbearing mother and trying to manage to keep her happy as well. The societal pressures of being a woman who really wants to have it all may be more than can she bear if she can actually survive her work and personal life.
There are parts of the movie that are a bit hard to watch, and others even more unpleasant. But the movie doesn’t shy away from the messy side of life the good or bad. You can catch Fair Play in theaters for one week starting on Friday, September 29, and then it will be streaming on Netflix on Friday, October 6th.
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About Fair Play
When a coveted promotion at a cutthroat financial firm arises, once supportive exchanges between lovers Emily (Phoebe Dynevor) and Luke (Alden Ehrenreich) begin to sour into something more sinister. As the power dynamics irrevocably shift in their relationship, the couple must face the true price of success and the unnerving limits of ambition. In her feature debut, writer-director Chloe Domont weaves a taut relationship thriller, staring down the destructive gender dynamics that pit partners against each other in a world that is transforming faster than the rules can keep up. Also starring Eddie Marsan, Rich Sommer, and Sebastian De Souza, Fair Play unravels the uncomfortable collision of empowerment and ego.