Steal Away (2025)★ 5.1/10
- Mystery
- Thriller
Directed by: Clement Virgo
Written by: Tamara Berger, Clement Virgo
A teenager forms an intense bond with a refugee taken in by her family. As their obsessive relationship deepens, she becomes enamored with the refugee's lifestyle, leading to desire, jealousy, and a world that is not as it appears.
Cast & crew
See all ›
Videos
See all ›
Reviews
G
Gwen PemOctober 10, 2025
Gwen PemOctober 10, 2025This film looks great, and the Afro-futuristic construction of the setting was supe interesting and immersive. I also really enjoyed Mallori Johnson's performance. Unfortunately, there's not much more that I liked about Steal Away. The story seems confused by itself, and I never really got a grasp on what exactly the idea behind it was. It see-saws between overly ambiguous and incredibly on the nose in a way that just wasn't for me. I do want to check out more of Clement Virgo's work because I've heard good things, but this wasn't the strongest starting point
F
FlemishCatOctober 9, 2025
FlemishCatOctober 9, 2025I went into the Vancouver premiere of this film without knowing anything more about it than the catalogue text. I adore most of Clement Virgo's work, including his wonderful film Brother and his top-notch TV series The Book of Negroes, and The Madness.
The afrofuturistic film Steal Away looks stunning, with high production value and great cast, particularly the two leading women.
I already thought the setting looked strangely un-Canadian and then I was shocked to see high-calibre Flemish actors like Koen De Bouw, Hilde Van Mieghem and Matteo Simoni pop up without much meaningful dialogue. Huh?
It turned to be a Belgian-Canadian co-production, hence the European setting of the village and buildings, and the Flemish faces in what was supposed to be a futuristic North American story (I assume).
No matter how great the film looked, I could not understand the story for the life of me. Was it another take on "Get Out?" or "Rosemary's Baby?" Or fairy tales?
The plot was so enigmatic, and some of the "feminist" scenes (including the erotic ones) so painful to watch, that I'd rather not rate this film.
A director of Clement Virgo's level does not deserve a low rating but this film does, alas.
I think Peliplat needs me to select a rating, which I will do, reluctantly.
At the Q&A, the director shared that it had been difficult to get funding and festival selections for this film... This means, I'm likely not the only one with doubts about the screenplay...
--VIFF 2025 film No. 6--
The afrofuturistic film Steal Away looks stunning, with high production value and great cast, particularly the two leading women.
I already thought the setting looked strangely un-Canadian and then I was shocked to see high-calibre Flemish actors like Koen De Bouw, Hilde Van Mieghem and Matteo Simoni pop up without much meaningful dialogue. Huh?
It turned to be a Belgian-Canadian co-production, hence the European setting of the village and buildings, and the Flemish faces in what was supposed to be a futuristic North American story (I assume).
No matter how great the film looked, I could not understand the story for the life of me. Was it another take on "Get Out?" or "Rosemary's Baby?" Or fairy tales?
The plot was so enigmatic, and some of the "feminist" scenes (including the erotic ones) so painful to watch, that I'd rather not rate this film.
A director of Clement Virgo's level does not deserve a low rating but this film does, alas.
I think Peliplat needs me to select a rating, which I will do, reluctantly.
At the Q&A, the director shared that it had been difficult to get funding and festival selections for this film... This means, I'm likely not the only one with doubts about the screenplay...
--VIFF 2025 film No. 6--
