Quiet and methodically slow, Sharp Corner is a psychological marvel shown at this year’s Glasgow Film Festival. Starring Ben Foster and Cobie Smulders, it tells the slow unravelling of a man whose obsession with car accidents takes a dark and unexpected turn—one that derails his life and inadvertently damages his relationship with his family.
Josh and Rachel have finally found their dream home. One in which they can build their future and raise their son Max in peace. But that all turns into a nightmare when a car crashes into the tree right outside their house, shattering the window and their dreams. One accident turns into two, and like dominos, other horrific events continuously occur at that same sharp corner by their new home. Rachel worries about Max growing up in such a high-stress environment. Josh on the other hand becomes consumed by these accidents, obsessing over the victims and the idea of saving them. As Josh digs deeper into this terrifying hole, his life slowly unravels.
Described as a “slow-burn psychological thriller” by director Jason Buxton, Sharp Corner is based on the short story from Russell Wangersky’s collection Whirl Away. It’s a disturbing autopsy of the hero complex and the different effects of trauma on individuals. Its excellence is in the quiet build-up of Josh’s character. His initial interest in the car accidents may at first seem like a trauma response, but as the film escalates, so does his obsession. There’s plenty to explore with Rachel’s work as a therapist, adding tension and nuance to the couple’s relationship. Most intriguing of all is the parallel between father and son, with Max’s anxiety rising as Josh descends further. It’s a well-crafted narrative, dissecting Josh and his motivations, and interrogating the crippling effects of his actions on his relationships—with his family, and even the strangers surrounding him.
The Indiependent caught up with the director at this year’s Glasgow Film Festival, where he discussed his admiration for Wangersky’s writing and the initial idea for Sharp Corner. He also talked about his fascination with psychology, how he mixed that with the slow-burn thrill of his film, and how he worked with the wonderful talents of Foster and Smulders to bring that vision to life.
Sharp Corners is inspired by one of the short stories from Whirl Away by Russell Wangersky. With so many unique stories to choose from that collection, how did you land on this one as the basis for a feature film?
Jason Buxton: Actually, I optioned four of those stories from that collection because I love Russell’s writing. My original idea was that I would tell multiple stories—kind of like a Magnolia type of film where you have characters from different stories converge at the end. But as I started to explore the Sharp Corner characters of the story, I realised that was a film in and of itself. I gave Russell back the other stories and just focused on Sharp Corner.
This film has been in development for about a decade. Has the script changed much from when you first started writing it to the point of filming it?
JB: Fundamentally, it was the same structure. I always knew where I wanted it to end [and] where the narrative was headed. The original draft was—I would say—thinner. We added more of a plot with Josh’s workplace and fleshed out the relationship he has with his wife. We just honed it over the years.
I like the slow-ticking time bomb of Josh’s character and how we never fully get a read on what he’s thinking. What was the experience like for you, writing such a dynamic character?
JB: I just saw this character who doesn’t have a relationship with himself; he doesn’t really live or examine life. I was interested in the dangers of that—when somebody isn’t aware of their own shadow. The slow-burn, psychological thriller character who’s dangerous because they don’t understand themselves or what’s going on inside of themselves is fascinating.
What does Cobie’s character and her psycho-analytic perspective add to elucidating Josh’s descent?
JB: I’ve always been interested in psychology; I’ve always been interested in therapy. I thought that was a really great counterpoint. She wants Josh to take responsibility for himself. He’s her husband—she doesn’t want to be his therapist. She wants him to take control. It seemed like the right way to go as a counterpoint to Ben’s character.
Speaking of Ben, what is it about him that you thought was perfect for the role of Josh?
JB: There’s a mystery in terms of the character in what is going on in his head. He’s almost figuring it all out for himself as the story progresses. Ben brings a lot behind the eyes to Josh; you can see the character’s inner life. I think it makes it more of a compelling watch.
How did you audition or curate the rest of the cast, with Cobie Smulders and William Kosovic supporting Ben’s performance?
JB: In the case of Cobie, she doesn’t audition. At her level, you make an offer. We made an offer and we’re very happy that she wanted to do the film. She’s Canadian, so that worked out for our financing. We were in an international co-production with Ireland and so, because Ben is American, we needed to bring in a Canadian or an Irish actor in the number two role. Cobie was at the top of our list, and we’re very excited that she decided to participate in the movie.
For Max—William was five when he first put an audition on tape. He lives in Vancouver; I live in Halifax, Nova Scotia. William lives on the other side of the country in Vancouver. We did local casting, first of all. Then we did Toronto casting, and then we did nationwide casting in Canada. That’s when we found William. He’s terrific! Really, I think [he was] the only viable choice for us. It’s very tricky, as you can imagine, to find a six-year-old who has the presence and the ability to stay focused through a lengthy period of time. We’re very happy to have him.
What was it like working with Ben and Cobie? Did you give them a lot of creative input into how to cultivate the dynamic between the two characters and the slow unravelling of the husband-and-wife relationship?
JB: We didn’t have a lot of prep time with them, unfortunately. Often, with movie stars and their schedules, it’s hard to get an extended rehearsal time. What I try to do as a director is not go in with pre-conceived ideas on how we’re going to shoot the scene. It’s a bit scary; I think a lot of people will want to be prepared. With actors at that level, it was very important for me that I deal with my comfortability and listen to them. Listen to how they’re feeling about the characters, how they want to block the scene, and often figure out from there how we’re going to shoot it. They’re great. They work great together and they’re very dedicated.
I also like this parallel in the film with Josh’s descent and Max’s rising anxiety level—this parallel between father and son. Was that an important aspect for you to highlight in Sharp Corner?
JB: Yes. My daughter was six when I wrote the script. A lot of the kinds of things that Max says in the movie were things she would say, and that I would write down. She had a lot of anxiety at that age—she had a lot of anxiety about age four onwards when she realised that life ends. She couldn’t really grapple with that concept of mortality. That was a good template for me in terms of Max and what he might be going through with the car accidents happening on their doorstep.
When people think of thrillers, they think of high-stakes action and lots of violence. This film errs more on the psychological side, focusing on the relationship between the characters. Was it hard maintaining that balance of keeping things grounded while still also providing exciting elements in the film?
JB: Over time, genre creates a life of its own, and then people plug into it. But then they can deviate from the form. That’s how things evolve—by people challenging genre expectations. I always saw this as a slow-burn psychological thriller, but also a tongue-in-cheek dark comedy. I always felt like it would work, but it’s a very tricky mixture to maintain. With the deadpan nature of the comedy, it’s important to not let the air out of the balloon and damage the suspense and the thriller aspects. It was tricky to hone that in the edit; to make sure that we were in the right wheelhouse in terms of the tone.
Bringing it back to that collection of short stories, you said you initially wanted four of these stories and characters to intersect. Do you think any of those other stories, like Sharp Corner, have potential to be films of their own?
JB: They’ve stayed with me. It’s tricky because to get people to see films, it’s good to have a high concept. I think Sharp Corner had that high concept. It had a hook to bring an audience in. The others are a little bit more character-driven and a little bit more straightforward. I don’t quite know how I would fashion them into a narrative without the Sharp Corner story to ground them. But I love them. I love Russell’s work.
In fact, we have had some correspondence. Because I had been developing the project for about ten years, I would check in every year with his agent, who lived close to me. Then I spoke with Russell a couple of times. He used to be a first-responder firefighter. I would reach out to him to get some background research to help me write the script, but we never met because he lives in a different part of Canada. We didn’t meet until we premiered the film in Toronto. He loved it, which is great. I have such respect for his work, and he felt like it spoke to his story but became its own thing as well. That was very gratifying.
Interview by Mae Trumata
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