A Strange, Unsettling Horror That Doesn't Quite Work

Rating: 6/10 (16 September 2017)

As someone who admires Darren Aronofsky as a director, I was looking forward to this highly unconventional but deeply disturbing psychological horror. While the film is surreal and shocking, it unfortunately does not quite all hold together. It ends up being something that seems to lack a clear meaning as well, which is disappointing given that it is directed by a highly respectable auteur.
The film is essentially the twisted story of a husband (Javier Bardem) who is a writer, and her pregnant wife (Jennifer Lawrence.) To say anything else more could possibly reveal spoilers, and you don't want to walk into this movie knowing what's going to happen. All I will say is that the story gets increasingly more outlandish, surprising, and violent. The film's acting is uniformly strong across the board, with great lead performances by Lawrence and Bardem as well as considerable strength in the acting quality of major supporting characters. Michelle Pfeiffer is particularly strong here. The film is filmed nicely, with a thoughtful and commendable mix of wider and narrower shots.
Unfortunately, as the story gets more over-the-top and outlandish, the viewer's interest in the film begins to wane. The increasing ridiculousness of the plot completely lacks any sort of point, and just when you think it can't get any stranger, it does--but once again, without any point! As a result, you leave the film thinking "what was that?" This feeling is particularly heightened by the lack of attachment or emotional response towards any of the characters--let alone empathy. As a result, the film's sheer outrageousness will linger in your mind--but nothing else about it will. This isn't a terrible film by any means, but it's unfortunately a bit of a disappointment. I don't regret seeing it per se, but wish I had gone to "Brad's Status" or "It" instead. 6/10