Recession, unemployment, bankruptcy and general financial ruin. These are issues impacting people all over the world and there is no easy solution to the problem. As homes and belongings are threatened with foreclosure and repossession, people become desperate to find a way out. With the wolves at the door, even the most radical answer is better than no answer at all. In Traders, one man creates a gateway to an extreme resolution to people’s money troubles — though it doesn’t all go according to his plan.
Vernon Stynes (John Bradley) and Harry Fox (Killian Scott) worked at the same company until it was closed due to a major scandal. While Harry doesn’t have many transferable skills, Vernon is convinced he can use his programming skills to become an entrepreneur and get back on top. However, the scheme he eventually devises sounds implausible — at first. Vernon builds a covert website on which people can agree to meet and fight to the death for the other person’s liquidated life’s assets, thus completing a “trade.” It’s not murder since it’s consensual and there are a series of rules to keep their activities under the radar. But it’s Harry who ends up benefitting from Vernon’s idea, which doesn’t sit well with the creator.
Though the concept sounds very macabre, that’s not how it’s presented. In some cases it’s sad and somewhat pathetic; in others, it’s a bit thrilling as egos clash in a deserted lot. Harry is narrating the story, so seeing it from the perspective of someone embracing the competition makes it seem empowering rather than ghoulish. And since everyone is experiencing some form of financial distress, no one is truly taking advantage of the other. Consequently, the script does an excellent job rationalizing this barbaric last resort and keeping its champion from looking like a fiend; that honour is reserved for Vernon, who was inspired by a discouraging statistic: for each one per cent rise in unemployment, the rate of suicide increases by eight per cent. It’s called “econocide.”
Vernon found a way to exploit people’s misery, even if he overestimated his own ability to capitalize on it. But while Harry accepts the consequences of his actions and the kill-or-be-killed contract into which he enters as a trader, Vernon is less comfortable with the costs of his invention. This conflict comprises a significant part of the narrative, drawing focus from the actual death matches that serve as interludes to their drama. Audiences are still privy to Harry’s generally bizarre bouts, but they are somewhat secondary to the other goings on in his life like most “jobs.”
Co-writers and directors Rachael Moriarty and Peter Murphy take an outlandish idea and effectively deliver a rather convincing depiction of how such death deals may unfold with a touch of Irish irony. Each of Harry’s opponents represents a different type of fighter, though their group doesn’t appear to ever be infiltrated by trained challengers looking to profit on the others’ inexperience. Harry’s evolution to undefeated trader is a little rushed, but Scott makes it believable by playing the character as eager to maintain his lifestyle at any cost. Conversely, Vernon is far more weaselly; a characteristic Bradley portrays with so much authenticity you hope someone finally wrings his neck.
The Fantasia Film Festival international premiere is a definite favourite as it combines dark humour and an undeniably intriguing concept with highly recommendable results.
Directors: Rachael Moriarty and Peter Murphy
Starring: Killian Scott, John Bradley and Peter O’Meara
