FILM REVIEW: TEENAGE SEX & DEATH AT CAMP MIASMA (15) ESP RATING: 4.5/5

Just like Marmite, you’ll either love or hate this bizarre, stylish and deeply unconventional slow burner.

Please take my 4.5/5 with a huge pinch of salt. If you want a straightforward horror, this probably isn’t for you. If you enjoy slow, psychological films that leave you questioning what you’ve just watched – this satirical surrealist slasher could be right up your alley.

Written and directed by Jane Schoenbrun – who made two low-budget indie horrors We’re All Going to the World’s Fair and I Saw the TV Glow previously – this follows Kris (Hannah Einbinder from comedy-drama series Hacks), a young filmmaker attempting to resurrect a notoriously gory 1980s franchise.

She tracks down Billy Presley (Gillian Anderson) – the actress who starred in the original – and what begins as research, gradually develops into something far stranger, exploring identity, desire, sexual awakening and the blurred line between fantasy and reality.

Einbinder and Anderson are both excellent, with the X-Files actress in particular bringing an especially mysterious quality to her role. The entire film relies heavily on these performances – and thankfully they deliver.

But I do think the marketing (for those who saw it) may have done this film a slight disservice. The trailers make it look considerably funnier and more horror-focused than it actually is. If you’re expecting more horror and less character study, it’s best to completely flip that. This is very slow-paced, far more interested in atmosphere and character than constant scares.

The closest comparison I kept coming back to was David Fincher. The atmosphere, pacing and increasingly surreal tone gave me Mulholland Drive ‘vibes’ at times.

For the first time in a fair while, I went to the cinema alone to watch this. I wish I hadn’t.

I desperately wanted someone to talk to about it afterwards. So much so I put on my ‘journalistic hat’ and actually approached a couple of complete strangers who had just seen it, purely because I needed another opinion on what I’d just experienced.

Turns out, they loved it too.

Hopefully I’ve helped manage your expectations as to whether this is for you also. But if it has piqued your interest, just keep in mind that screenings are limited.

Fellow Fincher fans – grab a ticket while you can. 

ESP Rating: 4.5/5

Mike Clarke

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfI21sD8Fho

Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough, Out Now

Cast: Hannah Einbinder, Gillian Anderson, Jack Haven, Patrick Fischler, Jasmin Savoy Brown & Quintessa Swindell

Running Time: 1 Hr 52 Mins

Director: Jane Schoenbrun

Film Review Venue: Showcase Cinema De Lux Peterborough

For all the latest film information & showtimes at Peterborough’s Showcase Cinema De Lux & Odeon Luxe Cinemas go to www.showcasecinemas.co.uk and www.odeon.co.uk