A deliriously dark serial-killer comedy-drama.

Jerry is an odd but optimistic guy, whose disturbing past comes back to haunt him when his cat starts telling him to kill people…

One bad date with a disinterested co-worker later and Jerry (Ryan Reynolds) is up to his old, bloody tricks again, and it’s not long before his fridge is full of talking heads (insert ‘Psycho Killer’ gag here).

The Voices, skilfully directed by Persepolis’ Marjane Satrapi, plays a little like Maniac’s funny cousin; but while it’s not as viciously demented as the 2012 Elijah Wood-starrer, it does perhaps paint a more balanced picture of its subject.

The film skips across a tricky tightrope between jet black comedy and even darker drama. Scenes deliberately unfold to provoke discomfort, as the audience suddenly comes to the terrible realisation that they’re laughing at someone with a dangerous mental illness. It’s exploitative at times, but ultimately teaches a shocking lesson in introspection and empathy.

Reynolds fares well with more, ahem, meaty material – it’s one of the few instances I’ve found him believable as a human being – and his naturally creepy charm serves the character well.

Gemma Arterton is game for a laugh as brash and bubbly Brit Fiona (and proves again that she would’ve made a fantastic Hammer starlet had she been born half a century earlier [see also: Byzantium]), while Anna Kendrick’s unpretentious sensitivity adds real emotional depth and terror to Jerry’s threat.

Just as the film drifts into more familiar slasher territory, we’re treated to a finale that has to be seen to be believed, and is best left unspoiled.

The Voices is a brilliant and bonkers trip that delivers a lesson as well as the laughs.

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