77) Under The Skin (2014)
An alien seductress preys upon hitchhikers in Scotland.
4/10 – The trailer (and Scarlett Johansson) drew me into this film – it looked mysterious, intense, haunting and weird. It was none of those things. It has become a dividing film among critics, but I feel that this film is one of those where the most pretentious of film lovers will rejoice. No plot, dialogue, meaning, or acting for that matter, it leaves you to fill in all of gaps. Of which there are lots.
There’s no wrong answer, because there isn’t an answer. Plenty of theories to explore, as film goers clutch at straws to try and comprehend where the last hour and half of their lives went. Expect this to be referred to as a “tour de force in avant garde”, or something else equally annoying. The meanings of this film were so drawn out and tenuous it got under my skin. If that was the aim of the film? Congratulations.
A collective sigh was audible from the audience in the cinema after this film. Whether it was people eager to leave, or people frustrated that they’d just spent money on this, or annoyed that they didn’t get to see Scarlett Johansson naked anymore, everyone left disgruntled.
With all of that said, it had it’s moments. The ‘hidden’ camera interactions with Scarlett and the Glasgow locals made for intriguing viewing, the vacant eyes of Scarlett throughout the film was at times chilling (in particular the scene on the beach) and the standout score to the film by Mica Levi was crucial to keeping the slight momentum it had, and therefore my interest to see it through to the end.
But all of those points could not save it from being just ‘OK’. Maybe Sci-fi fans will appreciate it more, but it was not for me.
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