I just came out of my TIFF 2025 screening of Steve, and the last 10 minutes had tears rolling down my face, but I am still not sure what to make of it. Powerful, overwhelming, heartbreaking, and hopeful are all words that come to mind. Excellent camera work, muted colours and meaningful close-ups are a huge part of what makes Steve resonate with viewers, but the overall message can be interpreted in so many ways.
Steve was adapted from Max Porter’s novella Shy, which he then turned into a screenplay. With the novella titled Shy and the film titled Steve, it only strengthens the bond that the two share in the film, which we will get to in a bit. Steve focuses on Cillian Murphy’s Steve, who is the “boss” at a school for very troubled boys.
The day we meet him, there is a film crew shooting a piece on the school, which they hope will put a positive spotlight on the work they are doing, though it doesn’t look like it will. At the same time, they learn the school will be shut down, leaving the boys with no one and the teachers unemployed. It’s quite a day.
The opening moments gently introduce us to the world we are about to explore, with a somewhat hectic drive to work with Steve. Something feels off, but it’s hard to put your finger on it, that is, until he arrives at the school. The camera work takes over in telling the story, with one very long shot as Steve enters the school net with chaos and frustration. The boys are rowdy, and the film crew is misbehaving. Everyone needs Steve, and he feels like he owes it to them. The single shot was fast and unstable, giving us a sense of the panic Steve experiences every day.
The camera goes on to be our insight into Steve’s mind throughout the film. Whether we are circling the room rapidly while he sits stationary speaking to staff, whipping around the campus while he frantically searches for someone or a long, slow close-up of his face while he gives in to his vices, the camera is the window to everything Steve is experiencing on the inside. I wish they had stuck with this instead of venturing into the surreal; the extra effects weren’t needed to emphasize his fall, the acting and cinematography captured it effortlessly.
The school for troubled youth has absolutely been done before, but Steve seems to strike a different chord than the rest. The camera work is worlds above anything I have seen in similar films, and the story itself is far deeper and oftentimes darker. Murphy’s Steve and Jay Lycurgo playing Shy bring the film to levels other actors may not have. Lycurgo left me speechless in the early moments, starting the film off strong, and luckily, he was able to carry that power right through the end.
To say more about specific story beats would do a disservice to those watching, but Steve thoughtfully unfolds its characters, bit by bit, and I think that without the right actors, this slow-burning approach would not have worked. There is a connection between Shy and Steve’s struggles that goes beyond the film, possibly in the book, but even without all the details, it is still a very powerful feeling, almost something spiritual.
I think that to some, this film will be a hard watch, but to others, it might be a necessary one. The power of a family, whatever that may look like to them, is really driven home. Hard or not, Steve will stick with viewers, leaving them stuck in their emotions long after the credits roll.
Steve will be on Netflix in the U.S., U.K., and Ireland on October 3.
