Miller’s Girl

Like a steamy romantic fantasy novel without the novel — and the steam — Miller’s Girl offers an unsettling yet unconvincing look at a teacher-student relationship born from literary appreciation.

This lurid thriller is driven by some moderately intriguing character dynamics and sharp performances, but these eccentrics feel like they came from a screenwriter’s head as opposed to the real world.

As a coming-of-age satire, the film emphasizes attitude over authenticity. As an exploration of academic boundaries, it struggles to make a deeper emotional connection.

Miller (Martin Freeman) is a longtime creative writing teacher at a public high school in a Tennessee small town. On the first day of the semester, he’s greeted by an early arrival — Cairo (Jenna Ortega), an angst-ridden and precocious pupil who speaks highly of her new mentor and has even read his book.

Apparently, she’s generationally wealthy and has moved into an ancestral mansion in an adjacent neighborhood, and walks through the woods alone every day to school. “I’m the scariest thing in there,” she explains when questioned about the potential dangers.

The brooding title character maintains a mysterious allure, both for Miller and for moviegoers. At her suggestion, he considers restarting his own writing career. Is she his muse, or something more? How much of his attraction is physical versus intellectual?

The sassy Cairo and her equally libidinous best friend (Gideon Adlon) see an opportunity to stir the pot, as Cairo pushes Miller’s buttons both in person and on the page. After all, his marriage to an alcoholic (Dagmara Dominczyk) is stagnating anyway, so he seeks a closer connection. He knows restraint will be key, if he can suppress his desires.

Meanwhile, she’s the aggressor and the manipulator, yet knows she holds the power as their interactions evolve and our sympathies shift.

As these two pretentious snobs accompany one another through their respective existential crises, we realize that neither of them seems to be as talented as they both keep telling one another.

Attempting to tap into artistic inspiration and the creative process, the screenplay by rookie director Jade Halley Bartlett ponders how writers separately reality from fiction, or whether they’re inextricably linked.

Along the way, it strains to add layers of sophistication through sexual fluidity and moral ambiguity. But without a more assured modulation of tone, Miller’s Girl is more ponderous than provocative.

Rated R, 93 minutes.