If you put a sawbuck on Thoroughbreds to win, place or even be a good show, you took the loss. Finley falls off the saddle in his attempt at neo-noir by betting on an outlandish story hidden inside a flailing one.

As we ride into the affluent Connecticut suburbs, Amanda (Cooke) and Lily (Taylor-Joy) are former pals reconnected through SAT prep. Amanda, who doesn’t feel any emotion, convinces Lily, who hides her obvious emotions behind a plastic smile, to eliminate her stepdad, Mark (Sparks). Mark is a wealthy, stern and humorless jerk but certainly not worthy of this plot hatched in backyard tennis courts. But is he just the manifestation of unjust societal pressures? To be honest, we are not compelled enough to care.

Tim (Yelchin), the hitman, arrives to whisk in some blundering madness to the mess, except he doesn’t. He is, in fact, an unfunny add-on who yips about his pusher plans. However, the film’s essential moments revolve around his ineptitude. And Amanda’s portrayed sadistic intelligence presents as nothing more than forced fluff instead of street sense.

The film tries to outsmart itself. Beware the perils of plagiarism as Thoroughbreds can only pony up 1.79 napkins out of 5.