Sunday 10 August 2014

Under the Skin


Under the Skin, in all its sinister grace, is most extraordinary in that it is capable of evoking physical responses from its audience. My skin prickled at many a moment, I was short of breath at other points and my fingernails dug deep into skin as I clenched my fists involuntarily from the sheer suspense. The piece is a refreshing, revolutionary, entirely bizarre take on on the tired alien science fiction genre. It burns the trademark disturbing images deep into our minds, not by force but by art. Under the Skin transcends a twisted, cold beauty, stepping deeply into a subversive Stanley-Kubrick-style vision. What director Jonathan Glazer crafts expertly with a clear aesthetic precision in each and every scene, is the eerie atmosphere. At many points, together with otherworldly high-pitched sound effects, the solemn heavy drum beat and sharp, shocking visuals the film borders on pure horror. 

An alien, in the form of a mysterious, attractive young woman, (Scarlett Johanson) roams through Scotland in search of vulnerable, isolated men. She entices them away where they are met with an ominous, perplexing fate: their bodies are absorbed into a thick black liquid where eventually they are sucked away into a strange red light leaving only their skin behind. However, the alien begins to become increasingly self-aware of the humanity of her disguise and seeks to understand it. 


The true merit of Under the Skin lies in the grandiose observations it makes about our existence, about humanity. The film provokes much discussion into human interactions, seduction, trust and the contentious power of women over men and men over women. It explores the subtle dominance of women, from the command of sexual allure and captivation, and the subsequent appeal on men. All of this can be construed from the understated, eerie fashion in which each event is portrayed. Quiet, beautiful statements are made as our alien seductress experiences life as one of us. She's an observer, a hidden witness whom becomes increasingly engaged with the collective encounter of humanity. 

The flaws of Under the Skin are primarily stylistic ones. An intriguing, utterly bewildering introduction gives way to a slightly repetitive sequence when our female alien goes hunting - she's driving and driving, luring and luring, they're sinking and sinking. But the story finally takes hold of its audience when variations come to play - unexpected events provoking a response from Johansson's character. We encounter an eerie, troubling scene on an isolated beach, sympathy is felt by our alien creature and something of a rebellion ensues. 






The cinematography crafted by Daniel Landin may be considered a special treasure within the film. Landin works hard to fashion the easy and believable horizon we call society, from the eyes of a foreign being. The driving shots are effective, the seaside frames of wind blowing water off water stun and final views of rising smoke, ethereal yet wholly unnerving. First-time film composer Mica Levi's effort is magnificent - that tune, that melody, that sharp cord that really creeps deep Under the Skin, and tells more of the story than it really should. 
The disquieting splendour of the feature is centred on Scarlett Johansson. The emotional range of the character experiences continuous growth throughout the film - the cold creature evolves before our eyes: we see pity, bewilderment, fear, horror, insecurity and the odd spot of happiness. Each sentiment is effortlessly facilitated by Johansson whose transition between each is more than flawless - it is a marvel to watch.

The fluid, ambiguous and sinister spectacle Under the Skin establishes director Jonathon Grazer as a shrewd, enterprising type of filmmaker - constantly searching for ways to mesmerise his audience with the hypnotic concoction of movement and sound. To call him "visionary" would be ill-suffice; the man not only sees but is a master of conveying, of showing, of beguiling presentation.  

84/100

10 comments:

  1. Amazing review! I'm glad you're back, I've missed reading your posts!

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    1. Thank you so much! I've missed writing. Finally managed to muster up the strength for some real cinema passion.

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  2. I love the kicker to this review. Under the Skin was ingenious because it was a fluid, ambiguous, and sinister spectacle - that's a great way to sum this movie up. So happy you liked this one!

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    1. Thank you! Yes I think that regardless of someone's actual opinion it was generally acknowledged that Under the Skin was intentionally ambiguous, flowing and eerie. It just depended on whether that person enjoyed and appreciated that very particular type of cinema.

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  3. This is a very beautifully written review! I wish I could've enjoyed it as much. All I could think of is the wasted potential it had only adapting 1/3 of the novel.

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    1. Thank you Brittani! I wrote the review about a fortnight after I actually saw it. I definitely appreciated it more after some consideration. Perhaps I enjoyed it more because I haven't read the book but yes, I did hear that Glazer's adaptation was a very loose one.

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  4. Beautifully written! i actually really liked the hunting scenes - they showed how monotonous her life was. It's in latter part that the film started to drag for me. I only wish they stuck closer to the novel which is about 10x more thought provoking. It's certainly a shocking movie, though, that baby scene may be the most horrific thing I saw in a film.

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    1. Thank you! That means a lot Sati. I feel like I really need to seek out the novel now. Shocking indeed and yes that scene was particular perturbing. Ah the cinematic skill of Glazer - unsettling audiences since 2000

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  5. I loved this movie. I found it interesting how they managed to make the human characters seem alien and the alien herself seemed to be the most human character in the movie.

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    1. That's a wonderful way to describe the way Jonathan Glazer managed to create empathy for Johansson's character. I'm so glad to hear that you enjoyed it too. Thanks for reading and commenting John.

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