Without a doubt one of the greatest films I’ve ever seen yet it is also one of the most disturbing.
The film has what seems to be a simple premise. Scarlett Johansson plays an alien who drives around Glasgow and picks up hitchhikers in her van to lure them back to her apartment. There she takes them to a dimension where they’re consumed by the darkness, all the while she is observing human life and beginning to both appreciate and experience it. At least that is how I perceived the plot, I won’t give away anymore due to spoilers and such. The plot may not sound the most compelling in the world but as soon as I started watching this film I could not take my eyes off the screen. Everything about this film was fantastic.
Scarlett Johansson delivers an iconic and terrifying performance which may well be the best performance of her career. She portrays this alien perfectly, playing both a seductress and a creature puzzled by its new environment. Her performance in the film is entrancing almost hypnotizing sometimes. The supporting actors in this film are also fantastic. Each other giving different yet great deliveries. Each actor has their own presence in this movie.
The cinematography in this movie is some of the best I have ever seen. Some shots in the film capture some truly beautiful imagery. Some capture some truly disturbing and terrifying imagery. The imagery in this film is terrifying and disturbing with a soundtrack to match. It makes some disturbing almost uncomfortable moments watching this film. Each time I have watched this film I watched it in the dark and each time I felt uncomfortable enough and scared enough that I found myself turning on a light source. The imagery whilst being uncomfortable can also be a bizarre and full of imagination and Johansson fits right in to all.
The film itself is not just a montage of weird imagery and music. There is narrative that is compelling enough to make you want to follow this alien through its journey. This film is one of those films that will have you thinking about it for days after watching it questioning every element of it and trying to piece together what the film itself was. That to me is a masterpiece a film that ends up stuck in your mind for days after watching a film that you can’t stop thinking about and trying to interpret. One that seeps into your mind and you could almost say leaves the screen a piece of art.
This film is not for everyone I would recommend watching the trailer before you give this film a try. This film was for me and has become one of my favorite films of all time. I found it compelling and felt uncomfortable throughout the whole film truly something else.
4/4 Stars
