🍿39: Men
This week, a new critic takes the salty helm with their review on Alex Garland's "underwhelming" horror, Men.
“If I was being completely honest, I was just like everybody else: shit-scared of the great unknown.”
~ The Beach, 2000
Greetings
Hi. I’m Mia. I’m a writer, a chef and a terrible person to watch a horror film with. Yet here we are!
Seriously though, I’m so happy to be taking the wheel from Tom this week. His dedication to this newsletter and all you readers is admirable. And his reviews aren’t half bad either… Hopefully, I can put my horror film prejudice aside and do this week’s issue of Salty Popcorn justice.
So, back to the horror. We have a love-hate relationship. A marmite bond. I’m lured to them, they break me and the cycle repeats. So I’ll be honest with you, I was hesitant about reviewing this week’s film. I couldn’t see how I’d be able to give any comments that weren’t just ‘10/10 gore, would recommend’. Yet, when we walked out of the cinema a mere 11 hours ago, I had a lot to say.
I hope you enjoy!
Now for the headlines:
We get a glimpse of the next Indiana Jones film (due to be released this time next year) with this photo.
Quentin Tarantino announces upcoming film history book ‘Cinema Speculation’. Read more.
Macaulay Culkin joins the cast of the thriller movie Rich Flu. The film sees a deadly virus kill off the richest members of society first. Class warfare meets Covid. Fun! Read more.
Warwick Davies reprises his role as Willow in the upcoming Disney series, based on the 1988 film of the same name, due to air in November. Watch the trailer.
Interstellar actresses Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain reunite in Mothers’ Instinct, a paranoia-fuelled thriller set in 1960s America. Read more.
And finally, in the first look of Bradley Cooper’s upcoming biopic Maestro — his directoral follow up to A Star is Born — Cooper is transformed into the renowned Broadway composer, Leonard Bernstein. Read more.
Salty Popcorn is 100% free but you can support this independent publication by paying just £5 per month. In return, you’ll be the first to access upcoming premium features.
Upcoming Releases
The Menu
UK: 18 November // USA: 18 November
A couple (Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult) travels to a coastal island to eat at an exclusive restaurant where the chef (Ralph Fiennes) has prepared a lavish menu, with some shocking surprises. This is definitely one to watch.
Fire of Love
UK: 29 July // USA: 6 July
Intrepid scientists and lovers Katia and Maurice Krafft die in a volcanic explosion doing the very thing that brought them together: unravelling the mysteries of volcanoes by capturing some of nature's most explosive imagery.
This premiered at Sundance and was picked up by National Geographic Documentary Films for theatrical release followed by a debut on Disney+. An impressive start indeed! Tom and I loved Miranda July’s Kajillionaire, so I’m sure I speak for us both when I say we have high hopes for this.
Fact of the week
In an effort to amplify the scale of the ‘Space Jockey’ in Alien, Ridley Scott (who did all of the handheld camerawork himself) filmed his own children in miniature space suits.
The result is quite different when you realise it’s his kids in the suits, the scene almost looks cute - who doesn’t love tiny astronauts?!
Review: Men
Star rating:
3.5 (out of 5)
Where to watch:
USA: Only in Cinemas
UK: Only in Cinemas
Runtime:
1hr 40m
Director:
Alex Garland
Blurb:
A young woman (Jessie Buckley) goes on a solo vacation to the English countryside following the death of her ex-husband - and things get weird.
The review (SOME spoilers):
Within the first half an hour of Men, it essentially became my worst nightmare. Not as a film, mind you. The score was enchanting and eerie and the shots of the English countryside were hypnotic. The jump scares were yet to begin. It was a nightmare in that our protagonist, Harper (Jessie Buckley), experiences the kind of fear that makes your blood run cold. The kind that stops every woman in her tracks.
We see Harper exploring the woods near her holiday rental, calmed by blue skies and solitude. Until the Men come along. And suddenly, the inviting landscape becomes hellish.
It’s this moment that haunts me. The visceral panic in Harper’s eyes as she struggles to find her way back to the house. The way she checks behind her shoulder while walking through the calm landscapes is striking. It’s an image we usually see happening on dark streets, in supposedly more dangerous places. But here she is, in broad daylight, uneasy and afraid - this is when the film is at its most powerful. It captures the terrifying fact that more often than not, women need to be on guard.
Then it gets really bloody scary. Harper’s phone glitches while on Facetime, morphing her friend’s face into a screaming man’s. Windows smash in the middle of the night and hands reach through letterboxes. It’s genuinely terrifying.
What’s even more alarming is the fact that every person Harper comes across does her wrong. A child. A vicar. A policeman - all with the same face. The phrase “Not all men” comes to mind here, but it doesn’t feel like a clever comment, more like a clumsy acknowledgement.
The core problem with this film lies in the third act, where it becomes spoof-like and downright weird. I stopped covering my eyes and almost burst out laughing. That’s all I’ll say here, but scroll down if you don’t mind spoilers!
So, despite a strong start, its flimsy final scenes let this film down. Which, given that I didn’t have nightmares afterwards, is something of a relief. For this to be classed as a solid ‘horror’, it ought to leave you feeling more unsettled than unfazed.
Scroll down for The Critic’s Cut and to see what’s in the next issue.
If you liked Men…
Midsommar
2019 | UK: Netflix // US: Showtime
A couple travels to Northern Europe to visit a rural hometown's fabled Swedish mid-summer festival. What begins as an idyllic retreat quickly devolves into an increasingly violent and bizarre competition at the hands of a pagan cult. Another daytime horror for you.
In the next issue:
All My Friends Hate Me
UK: 10 June // USA: 11 June | Watch the Trailer
The Critic’s Cut 🚨SPOILER ALERT🚨:
While Men successfully terrified me, I found the villain (Rory Kinnear) to be the opposite of scary. It’s clear that he’s supposed to be representing all men, as every man Harper meets has his face, but ultimately, even when covered in blood, he gives off a dry, estate agent vibe. And do we really need to see him standing around naked quite so often? It would have been more effective if Harper were being harassed by a shadowy figure, rather than him.
Not only does Kinnear fail to sustain the fear factor, but we also have to witness him giving birth to himself (from various holes, including his mouth). While an obvious nod to generational trauma, it’s odd. To the extent that you wonder if the projectionist accidentally switched the slides to a biology documentary. Even Harper looks like she’s stifling a yawn at this point, watching slimy men causing a fuss in the hallway.
There’s also an unnecessary - and brief - car chase that makes Men fall flat. It awkwardly snaps the tension prematurely and feels a bit (a lot) silly. You half expect to hear ‘Cut!’ and for the actors to snort at their own bloopers.
So: Men. A portrait of a woman repeatedly tormented and ultimately pissed off. Exhausted. Done. I applaud Jessie Buckley for her performance here, particularly in the disturbing flashbacks where her husband abuses her. But as a film, it loses itself by the end.
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