Kyle Gallner – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

CAROLINA CAROLINE – Review by Diane Carson

June 22, 2026June 24, 2026 Diane Carson Adam Carter Rehmeier, Carolina Caroline, Kyle Gallner, Kyra Sedgwick, Samara Weaving

A sophomoric Bonnie & Clyde/Badlands copycat, director Adam Carter Rehmeier’s Carolina Caroline lacks complex characters and narrative creativity. Beginning three months after the main events, and thereby squandering any suspense concerning who will survive, Caroline (Samara Weaving) exits a motel room, throws up, and, after a driver exits his truck, steals it. Flashback to Caroline working in a rural Texas gas station when Oliver (Kyle Gallner) perpetrates a money payment/exchange con on the clerk. Confronting him, Caroline becomes enamored of his sophomoric philosophical justification and, shortly thereafter, agrees to hit the road with him, shoplifting, picking pockets, and robbing small town banks disguised with sunglasses and a black wig that is clearly exactly that. Unfortunately, this self-described “Southern gothic romantic crime thriller” fails to develop Oliver or Caroline beyond knee jerk simplicity.

Reviews

STRANGE DARLING – Review by Nadine Whitney

August 14, 2024August 17, 2024 Nadine Whitney Ed Begley Jr, Giovanni Ribisi, JT Mollner, Kyle Gallner, Strange Darling, Willa Fitzgerald

JT Mollner’s Strange Darling promises everything is not as it seems. A serial killer tale shown in six non-linear chapters, the audience is kept disoriented as Mollner feeds information in a deliberately confusing manner. What we know is that between 2018 and 2020 a notorious serial killer worked across the United States eventually ending up in Oregon. What we ‘see’ is a re-enactment of kinds with Willa Fitzgerald playing ‘Lady’ and Kyle Gallner playing ‘Demon.’ Lady, wounded and desperate is running for her life from Demon’s gun.

Reviews

WHAT COMES AROUND – Review by Rachel West

July 30, 2023July 30, 2023 Rachel West Amy Redford, Grace Van Dien, Kyle Gallner, Scott Organ, Summer Phoenix, What Comes Around

Director Amy Redford presents her second film, What Comes Around, as a relationship thriller but murky and awkward storytelling makes the film fall flat despite the best efforts of its star Grace Van Dien. Having first seen this film at TIFF last year, the odd storytelling and stylistic choices of What Comes Around seem to stand out even more upon a second viewing. Much like the performances, Redford’s direction feels shaky and uneven. Overall, this drama feels like a short film stretched out to feature length without enough depth to warrant the additional runtime.