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Michel faber under the skin review5/19/2023 ![]() ![]() It’s like inverted curb-crawling, as she drives around seeking strangers for apparent seduction, the blokes generally feeling they’ve won the lottery when a little small talk - establishing, usually, that they won’t be missed - leads to a lift from, well, Scarlett Johansson. ![]() It is - more specifically, spoiler-ifically - about an alien who adopts the body of a twentysomething hottie and stalks a cold, grey Scotland for men to pick up. Under The Skin is - broadly - about an awakening, as a coldly efficient worker comes to wonder if there’s more to her life and that of those around her. Allow yourself to settle beside Scarlett Johansson’s malleable lead, though, and to ask questions with (rather than of) her, and it’s likely to be a more invigorating experience. If you crave certainty in your cinema then you are unlikely to enjoy it. Those who haven’t read the novel - or any reviews - may take most of the running time to discover just what the hell is going on, and even then the conclusion is unclear. The imponderable question, for now, is whether his third will reward repeat viewing or simply require it, as it feels in places impenetrable. Jonathan Glazer’s previous two features - Sexy Beast and Birth - grew upon being rewatched. You can debate whether this is a recommendation. ![]() But, as frustrating and bewildering as Under The Skin is, it swims with moments of beauty and horror, and few films make you think so much. There’s a sexy, brooding, thrilling film to be made out of Michel Faber’s compelling novel of lust and death. ![]()
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