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TIFF Review: ‘Saint Maud’ is an Enthralling Slide into Obsession

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Saint Maud

For her feature film debut, writer/director Rose Glass comes out swinging with Saint Maud. The stage is set for a tense tête-à-tête between the film’s two lead actresses, each bringing their A-game to the battlefield. This psychological horror has an intense slow burn that explodes with one of the best final shots I’ve seen on film. 

Saint Maud follows a troubled young nurse who takes a position as the at-home care for Amanda (Jennifer Ehle, Zero Dark Thirty), a former dancer and choreographer. Maud (Morfydd Clark, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies) is devout in her religious beliefs and believes that — with Amanda’s cooperation — she can save her soul. A toxic obsession develops and threatens to consume them both.

Maud is coming fresh off the heels of a traumatic experience at her last job posting, leaving her ostracized and disgraced. To move past her tarnished name, Maud has reinvented herself, and when she meets Amanda, she sees a second chance.

Amanda is fascinated by Maud and begins a delicate dance of friendship. When Maud upsets their collaborative balance, Amanda is quick to knock her back into place. Thus, Maud’s world shifts and their fates are forever entwined.

The two leads are captivating as they weave through complex emotions and subtext. Clark delivers a compelling performance, leading the audience on an intensifying journey. Ehle oozes confidence and sexuality; even in her declining state, she’s the cat that caught the canary. 

Maud’s relationship with sexuality is left open and exposed. It’s a cold, raw look at desire and lust in women, and the socially imposed feelings of shame that come when we indulge in those fantasies. She views her needs as indiscretions that must be punished; her piety is held above all else. 

Scenes of a sexual nature are shot in a way that feels very intrusive, emphasizing Maud’s feelings of shame with isolated sound and an unflinching focus. Each moment is dripping with that awkward feeling that comes from a regrettable one-night stand. It’s extremely effective. 

This effect is heightened by the harsh realism with which these scenes are shot, contrasted with other scenes that hold an almost dreamlike quality. It creates an imbalance that reflects Maud’s mental state, highlighting her isolation.

The use of sound and lighting is exquisite. The lack of sound echoes through tense moments, while visceral sound effects are used as punctuation for intensity. Some scenes are basked in shadow and others flooded with light, perfectly reflecting Maud’s perception of events. It draws you into the action and emotion of the film, creating a naturalistic experience right to the shocking conclusion.

Saint Maud is a study of fanaticism told from the perspective of someone who is deeply lost in their own madness. The audience is left to question what is real right up to the final, explosive moments of the film. 

Glass has crafted a tight and powerful film that will stick with you long after the credits roll. Each moment we spend with Maud is an unravelling of her character — a discovery of her deepest, darkest nature. Saint Maud is a slow burn in the best possible way, raising the tension and stirring a sense of unease until it boils over. It’s an enthralling and fascinating film, and it’s an experience you won’t soon forget. 

 

For more from TIFF, check out our reviews of The Lighthouse and Blood Quantum.

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‘Blink Twice’ Trailer Presents a Thrilling Mystery in Paradise

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A new trailer for the movie formerly known as Pussy Island just dropped and it has us intrigued. Now with the more restrained title, Blink Twice, this  Zoë Kravitz-directed black comedy is set to land in theaters on August 23.

The film is packed with stars including Channing Tatum, Naomi Ackie, Alia Shawkat, Simon Rex, Adria Arjona, Haley Joel Osment, Christian Slater, Kyle MacLachlan, and Geena Davis.

The trailer feels like a Benoit Blanc mystery; people are invited to a secluded location and disappear one by one, leaving one guest to figure out what is going on.

In the film, a billionaire named Slater King (Channing Tatum) invites a waitress named Frida (Naomi Ackie) to his private island, “It’s paradise. Wild nights blend into sun-soaked days and everyone’s having a great time. No one wants this trip to end, but as strange things start to happen, Frida begins to question her reality. There is something wrong with this place. She’ll have to uncover the truth if she wants to make it out of this party alive.”

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Movies

Melissa Barrera Says ‘Scary Movie VI’ Would Be “Fun To Do”

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Melissa Barrera might literally get the last laugh on Spyglass thanks to a possible Scary Movie sequel. Paramount and Miramax are seeing the right opportunity to bring the satirical franchise back into the fold and announced last week one might be in production as early as this fall.

The last chapter of the Scary Movie franchise was almost a decade ago and since the series lampoons thematic horror movies and pop culture trends, it would seem they have a lot of content to draw ideas from, including the recent reboot of slasher series Scream.

Barerra, who starred as final girl Samantha in those movies was abruptly fired from the latest chapter, Scream VII, for expressing what Spyglass interpreted as “antisemitism,” after the actress came out in support of Palestine on social media.

Even though the drama wasn’t a laughing matter, Barrera might get her chance to parody Sam in Scary Movie VI. That is if the opportunity arises. In an interview with Inverse, the 33-year-old actress was asked about Scary Movie VI, and her reply was intriguing.

“I always loved those movies,” the actress told Inverse. “When I saw it announced, I was like, ‘Oh, that would be fun. That would be so fun to do.’”

That “fun to do” part could be construed as a passive pitch to Paramount, but that’s open to interpretation.

Just like in her franchise, Scary Movie also has a legacy cast including Anna Faris and Regina Hall. There is no word yet on if either of those actors will appear in the reboot. With or without them, Barrera is still a fan of the comedies. “They have the iconic cast that did it, so we’ll see what goes on with that. I’m just excited to see a new one,” she told the publication.

Barrera is currently celebrating the box office success of her latest horror movie Abigail.

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Lists

Thrills and Chills: Ranking ‘Radio Silence’ Films from Bloody Brilliant to Just Bloody

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Radio Silence Films

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett, and Chad Villella are all filmmakers under the collective label called Radio Silence. Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett are the primary directors under that moniker while Villella produces.

They have gained popularity over the past 13 years and their films have become known as having a certain Radio Silence “signature.” They are bloody, usually contain monsters, and have breakneck action sequences. Their recent film Abigail exemplifies that signature and is perhaps their best film yet. They are currently working on a reboot of John Carpenter’s Escape From New York.

We thought we would go through the list of projects they have directed and rank them from high to low. None of the movies and shorts on this list are bad, they all have their merits. These rankings from top to bottom are just ones we felt showcased their talents the best.

We didn’t include movies they produced but didn’t direct.

#1. Abigail

An update to the second film on this list, Abagail is the natural progression of Radio Silence’s love of lockdown horror. It follows in pretty much the same footsteps of Ready or Not, but manages to go one better — make it about vampires.

Abigail

#2. Ready or Not

This film put Radio Silence on the map. While not as successful at the box office as some of their other films, Ready or Not proved that the team could step outside their limited anthology space and create a fun, thrilling, and bloody adventure-length film.

Ready or Not

#3. Scream (2022)

While Scream will always be a polarizing franchise, this prequel, sequel, reboot — however you want to label it showed just how much Radio Silence knew the source material. It wasn’t lazy or cash-grabby, just a good time with legendary characters we love and new ones who grew on us.

Scream (2022)

#4 Southbound (The Way Out)

Radio Silence tosses their found footage modus operandi for this anthology film. Responsible for the bookend stories, they create a terrifying world in their segment titled The Way Out, which involves strange floating beings and some sort of time loop. It’s kind of the first time we see their work without a shaky cam. If we were to rank this entire film, it would remain at this position on the list.

Southbound

#5. V/H/S (10/31/98)

The film that started it all for Radio Silence. Or should we say the segment that started it all. Even though this isn’t feature-length what they managed to do with the time they had was very good. Their chapter was titled 10/31/98, a found-footage short involving a group of friends who crash what they think is a staged exorcism only to learn not to assume things on Halloween night.

V/H/S

#6. Scream VI

Cranking up the action, moving to the big city and letting Ghostface use a shotgun, Scream VI turned the franchise on its head. Like their first one, this film played with canon and managed to win over a lot of fans in its direction, but alienated others for coloring too far outside the lines of Wes Craven’s beloved series. If any sequel was showing how the trope was going stale it was Scream VI, but it managed to squeeze some fresh blood out of this nearly three-decade mainstay.

Scream VI

#7. Devil’s Due

Fairly underrated, this, Radio Silence’s first feature-length film, is a sampler of things they took from V/H/S. It was filmed in an omnipresent found footage style, showcasing a form of possession, and features clueless men. Since this was their first bonafide major studio job it’s a wonderful touchstone to see how far they have come with their storytelling.

Devil’s Due

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