This surrealist, psychological, satirical, romance, horror movie, is a film that juggles ten different tones, a dozen different philosophical threads, and a thousand ideas about media, sex, death, and transformation.

The story concerns a slasher movie from the 80’s that is being remade by a young aspiring artistic indie filmmaker Kris, played by Hannah Einbinder. Kris travels to the deep north to meet with the original star of the 80’s film she’s remaking, the elusive Billy Presley, played by Gillian Anderson.

I don’t want to reveal any more plot details. It’s best if this film is allowed to take you along on it’s weird and winding way. Just be prepared, every time you think you know where the film is headed, it will take a turn and head in a slightly different direction.

What works about the film is it’s incredible look, it’s incredible score, it’s incredible production design, and it’s great performances.

This is film a delight to look at. There is such a vision on display for how the film should look and feel. It perfectly evokes the 80’s slasher films it’s commenting on. It also creates a sense of un-reality that permeates the themes of the film. It also creates the feeling that we are in a unique and special world that exists only in this movie. It’s an incredible feat of artistic expression.

The score is unique and provides a really cool juxtaposition with the images we’re seeing. There is a central bloodbath sequence in the film that might be set in the original 80’s movie, but it might also exist in Kris’s imagination. The killer of the original film enters the camp and slaughters everyone in sight, and although it is staged like a horror sequence it is set to this melancholic pop song that both comments on the genre and the murders and on the state of the film as a whole.

This is a very self aware and self reflective film that is commenting on the role movies play in our lives and our development. Today, people often define their personalities based on the type of media they consume and the stories they love. The adults who still sort themselves into Hogwarts houses is a perfect example. This film comments on those types of people and that type of media dependency, but it also has a lot more to say about the way modern people are shaped by media. It peels back the layers and looks at how our deepest childhood development is impacted by this movie’s we watched too young and how those media induced scars have shaped us as adults.

The film also has a lot to say about female sexuality and how it is used and weaponized and distorted by the movies and the slasher genre specifically. The two lead actresses handle the delicate sexual dance of their two characters brilliantly. Hannah Einbinder delivers an incredibly nuanced portrayal of a woman in conflict with her own sexuality. Her own desires are things that are at war with her own sense of self and what she should want. She delivers an exquisitely complicated portrayal with sensitivity, subtlety, and nuance. Gillian Anderson’s character could easily fall into the Norma Desmond, sexpot, femme fatale, hag role typically displayed in Hollywood movies. But through her deft handling of the character the sexual politics of that character she feels like a human being and never descends into the realms of caricature. She handles the strength and forbidding nature of the character brilliantly, whole balancing it with her own weaknesses and vulnerabilities. Both of the actresses handle the sexual material incredibly well. Without both performers giving their best you don’t have a movie.

The movie is a surrealist exploration of sexual and gender politics through the lens of 80’s slasher films while interrogating media literacy in the world today. If that doesn’t sound like your type of movie, you will hate this. If a nuanced depiction of women exploring their borders of their sexualities while dealing with slasher from a movie that may have come to life, doesn’t sound like a good time to you, then skip this movie. If a movie that juggles comedy, slasher, satire, horror, social commentary, psychological drama, and sexual thriller genres then this might not be for you.

I found this really interesting, challenging, and fun to watch. I do however see that this is not for everyone. If it sounds intriguing, I highly recommend it. If it sounds weird, please skip it. It’s broad aesthetic choices will be hard to get past, and it’s intense surrealist moments will be a real sticking point and ruin the movie experience for you.

I have some issues with the movie. I felt the ending needed to be more ambiguous or more straightforward. It kind of tilts into David Lynch territory without going all the way. I wish it had just gone all the way. I have a problem with a subplot that launches us into the third act. I don’t like the way it was handled. I know they’re trying to make a commentary, but I thought it could’ve been handled better. There were a couple of stylistic choices that I didn’t personally like. They just hit me the wrong way. Some minor quibbles, some bigger problems. Overall it’s a strong film with a lot to say.

This movie is my cup of tea. I understand it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. I love that we still have moves that are not made for everybody. Massive budget, four quadrant, superhero spectacles shouldn’t be the only things getting made these days. I’m very happy this movie isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. A