The film begins with a pair of mutilated bodies being found on the streets of New York. An apparent double murder, world-weary detective Eddie Argo (Stellan Skarsgård) and his rookie partner Helen (Melissa George) are assigned the case, and soon start connecting the murders with a series of double deaths in which the victims show up with WΔZ branded into their flesh.
Turns out the mysterious sign is actually the mathematical equation W delta Z - created by the American geneticist George Price - that apparently disproves the existence of altruism in nature. But how does such a theory relate to the mounting pile of victims, and why is Argo behaving like he knows more than he is letting on?
A violent tale of the lengths one is willing to go to for love, the shocking and violent nature of the story means that it's definitely not for the faint-hearted. Those who choose to persevere with such disturbing material however will be well rewarded.
Recent films of this ilk (we're thinking Saw and Captivity) have tended to glamorise torture and violence, but Shankland and Bradley avoid such titillation by placing the movie very much in the real world (even though Belfast is doubling for New York throughout). Shot on grainy stock and employing copious amounts of shaky-cam, WΔZ has a documentary like feel to it, giving the film an uneasy atmosphere throughout and making the horror all the more appalling and realistic when it kicks in.
The high quality of the performances also adds to the general tension. Helen is our guide into this depraved and brutal world, and Melissa George imbues her with just the right combination of naivety and bravery to ensure the audience roots for her throughout. Similarly Selma Blair is excellent in an initially hysterical role that eventually inspires both sadness and sympathy.
But WΔZ is Stellan Skarsgård's film, and he dominates proceedings from start to finish. Eddie Argo is a complex and at times ambiguous character, and Skarsgård is just the right man for the role, ensuring that your opinion of the character is constantly shifting until the film's final, devastating denouement.
Unfortunately, this is where WΔZ comes something of a cropper. Twist upon twist keeps the film zipping along at a fine old pace, but the final revelation goes too far, failing to convince on any level and undermining much of what has gone before.
Which is a shame as the proceeding 80 minutes are a wonderfully crafted mixture of horror and thriller that actually makes you think - no mean feet for a genre picture in the 21st century. Combining a unique story with smart visuals and a spot-on cast, both writer and director have made startling debuts, and it will interesting to see where they go from here.
