"The Stranger" (2020): One Naked Butt is Not Enough

"When a stranger makes a shocking claim about his wife, family man Adam Price becomes entangled in a mystery as he desperately searches for answers."

First, I hate the phrase "family man."  Why is it that reproducing makes a man noble, laudable, beyond reproach?  All he did was have sex.

Second, what difference does it make that it's a stranger?  Why is someone automatically sinister, just because you haven't met them?

Third, the title is The Stranger.  That's  been done to death: it's the title of 4 novels, about 20 films, a dozen tv series, and some songs and video games.  Granted, the original novel is also entitled The Stranger, but what does author Harlan Coben know? I never heard of him (the New York Times claims that he has written "dozens" of bestsellers). 

I'm ready to resume my Netflix search, but Bob points out that one of the stars is the dreamy Jacob Dudman of the A-List (top photo).  Besides, we've finished the new seasons of Bojack Horseman, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Lost in Space, The Good Place, Dear White People, and Big Mouth, and we're running low on things to watch.

Ok, ok.


Scene 1: some teenagers conniving around a bonfire, savage like the Lost Boys in Peter Pan.

  A naked boy (Kai Gunnarson) runs in terror through an alpaca farm.  Chest and butt shots. Wow!


Ok, you got my interest.

Scene 2: Earlier that day, we see Adam (Richard Armitage, left) living a Perfect with a capital P heterosexual fantasy life, throwing his job, house, wife, and kids in my face. 

Job: lawyer.

Wife: Corinne (Dervla Kirwan), who works at a feminine-coded job as a teacher.

Kids: Tom (Jacob Dudman) and Ryan (Mischa Handley), both wild about girls, cars, and football (soccer), everything sons are supposed to be, everything I wasn't as a kid, which caused my parents lots of grief.  I'm gritting my teeth.

In the midst of all this Perfection, the Stranger (Hannah John-Kamen) approaches Adam and tells him that Corinne faked her 2017 pregnancy and miscarriage so they would stay together.  He does some research, and discovers that Corinne paid for a service that specializes in fake pregnancies.

Scene 3: Meanwhile, Tom (the teenage son) tries to talk his girlfriend into sex.  They are interrupted by their chubby comic-relief friend Mike (Brandon Fellows, seen here with his costar, Allie the Alpaca), who brings them to the bonfire.

I think I see some boys dancing together.  At least Mike and Tom hug.












Scene 5: The morning after the bonfire and the Stranger, Detective Griffin (Siobhan Finneran) discusses giving her husband the boot with her friend Heidi (Jennifer Saunders of the gay cult classic Absolutely Fabulous)

She then meets her partner, Ross (Kadiff Kirwan,left) to investigate the case of a decapitated alpaca in the town square, which leads them to an alpaca farm.

Sorry, I can't take my eyes off Kadiff's bulge.

Scene 6: Adam the Perfect comes in from jogging (of course he jogs) to find chubby comic-relief Mike in his bathrobe, eating pancakes.  Did he, like, sleep with Tom last night?  Maybe Tom is bi?

Adam the Perfect visits his client, a retired cop who doesn't want to sell his house to an evil corporate redeveloper.  What does this have to do with anything, except to demonstrate that Adam is Practically Perfect in Every Way?

Scene 7:  Detectives Griffin and Ross find the naked boy in the woods, still alive. Nice butt.

Scene 8: Corinne the Good Wife gets back from her conference.  Adam the Perfect confronts her about the fake pregnancy.  She refuses to explain.

Scene 9: The naked boy is still unconscious, in the hospital.

Scene 10: Detective Griffin and Heidi the Absolutely Fabulous meet for coffee. What does this have to do with anything?

Scene 11: Corinne the Good Wife still refuses to explain.  But, ominously, she says "We all have secrets, Adam the Perfect.  Even you."

Scene 12: The detectives discover that the naked boy's name is Dante Gunnarson (cool combination of Italian and Icelandic).  He's still unresponsive.  Plus the alpaca was bitten by a human (not Dante).  So the boy stumbled across an  Equus thing?  Who is the alpaca-biter?

Scene 13:  Big School Award Night, with all the parents there.  Miscellaneous parents talk about how "something happened last night."  Corinne the Good Wife gets the Good Teacher award, but she is AWOL.   Later she sends a text: "We need some time apart.  Don't try to contact me." Gulp -- foul play?

Scene 14:  Bisexual Tom looks in his closet.  There's the alpaca head!  He seems to be upset, but not as upset as he would be if it was a surprise.

Scene 15:  Heidi the Absolutely Fabulous locks up her shop and leaves...to encounter the Stranger.

My verdict:  There might be some gay characters.  Not enough cute guys.  And these plot threads better all tie in together somehow.

C+