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Family Aflare

Director Chan-Wook Park's "Stoker" is something of a puzzle, in that it is more intricate than it may appear at first glance, and there are many small components that make up the whole picture. Taking cues from "The Addams Family", "The Royal Tennenbaums", the art of Edward Gorey, and the old BBC ghost story productions, "Stoker" reveals itself at a pace that may tax impatient viewers but will entertain those who appreciate cleverness and are willing to tolerate the film's shifting foundations.

Young India (Mia Wasikowska, "Alice in Wonderland") has just lost her father, and she's adrift in her family's mansion with only her mother, Evie (Nicole Kidman, "Moulin Rouge") and a selection of servants to keep her dubious company. India is by turns pensive and prickly, and in the opening voiceover she states that she see things that others don't see. It's unclear at the outset how literally this is meant to be taken. At her father's wake India meets her mysterious uncle, Charlie (Matthew Goode, "Watchmen"), whose previous absence from the family implies that he is a well-traveled adventurer or an exiled black sheep, or maybe both. Before long it becomes clear that Charlie is up to no good, but it takes forever to determine exactly what kind of no good. Is he a vampire? A usurper? An imposter? He seems to have designs on India, but he also toys with Evie in a way that indicates romantic interest - and so we learn one of the possible meanings of the film's title, as Charlie's dalliances add fuel to the already-smoldering rivalry between the Stoker women, and provide the catalyst for India's abrupt awakening from girlish innocence to adult awareness.

India initially gives an impression of lassitude, drifting unanchored through her days and only sparking to life under certain circumstances. Her clothes and manner put her at odds with her peers, and in fact it is strange when this previously timeless film is suddenly anchored in the present by showing India at her high school, in an art class, seeming unaffected by the bullying boys who try to goad her. A later encounter with these boys drives the second half of the film, and leads India to learn more about herself and her uncle, the violent nature of his attachment to her, and the ways in which they may be dangerously similar.

Written by actor Wentworth Miller ("Prison Break"), "Stoker" is a kaleidoscopic mystery that occasionally presents more than one version of events, and periodically erupts into disturbingly sensual violence. Fans of director Chan-wook Park's previous work ("Oldboy", "Lady Vengeance") are likely to be prepared, though unsuspecting viewers may not. Mr. Miller's script provides his leads with plenty of juicy material, and they make the most of it without giving in to the temptation to overdo. Indeed, Mr. Goode's Charlie is initially underplayed to the point of blandness, which gives him room for emotional shifts as more of his character is revealed, and allows for moments of humor before the proceedings become more intense. And Ms. Kidman and Ms. Wasikowska build a relationship that feels grimly lived-in; it's easy to fill in the bitter history that drives Ms. Kidman's Evie to spit furiously at her daughter, "I can't wait to watch life tear you apart." It's an evocative line, and one of many moments in "Stoker" that will stay with viewers and keep them thinking about resolution - just like any good puzzle should.