Carolina Caroline is a romantic crime thriller about a whirlwind relationship powered by intense passion and quick decisions. Caroline (Samara Weaving, Ready or Not 2) works at a gas station in a small town. When she sees a stranger (Kyle Gallner, Smile) pulling a scam, she is intrigued. The pair soon find comfort in each other leading to a crime spree that changes both of their lives.
Weaving can always be counted on to deliver in any role she undertakes. This may be one of her best. It is an understated performance seen most in the looks she gives Oliver (Gallner). Initially, she gazes at him with wonder. She hangs on his every word. As the relationship develops, she goes from wanting to learn and impress to taking a lead role in their most audacious acts.
Reteaming with director Adam Carter Rehmeier (the two worked together on the criminally underrated Dinner in America) Gallner is also excellent as the mysterious stranger who blows through the small town Caroline lives in. In the beginning, it seems like Carolina Caroline may make him a little too cool for school. Thankfully, this never happens as Oliver turns out to be caring and filled with emotion.
Carolina Caroline is powered by the chemistry between its two stars. This is important since there is not much to the plot. It is your basic story about a pair of con artists taking increasingly bigger jobs. But since Weaving and Gallner are so magnetic together, the story never seems boring or derivative. You can see the love the two feel for each other. The two pull audiences into their story of love and loss.
The third act is the most powerful. It is clear from when the action kicks in full that things can only head in one direction. Still, when things come to their natural head, it is an impactful moment. The climax has an emotional resonance that is still felt in the final moments when it is clear that one character is unable to move on.
Carolina Caroline comes to theaters June 5th.
