Getting your
Trinity Audioplayer ready...What’s it gonna be? A scary/sexy horror movie that deserves to follow in the lucrative footsteps of “Obsession?” A gruesome take on the Robin Hood fable?
You’ll find both in theaters this week.
Here’s our roundup.
“Leviticus”: The horror film renaissance shows zero signs of abating and director/writer Adrian Chiarella’s scary and sexy debut, a breakout hit at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, is doing its part. Chiarella has come up with an ingenious premise that is as twisted as it is thought-provoking. It burrows into the ultimate nightmare for anyone LGBTQ+: That the object of their same-sex desire doubles down in the form of a relentless doppelganger that’s intent on doing them irreparable harm. That’s what teen Naim (Joe Bird), a newbie in small-town Australia, smacks into after he meets, fools around with and falls for the athletic Ryan (Stacy Clausen), a guy wrestling with his own sexuality as well with the libidos of other closeted guys in town. Bird’s and Clausen’s chemistry is off the charts, but it’s when Naim’s jealousy gets the best of him that “Leviticus” sets into motion an evil force. Naim and his overly anxious single mom (Mia Wasikowska) attend rote church services in which the pastor looks to exorcise the LGBTQ+ from sinful boys who like boys and girls who like girls. Chiarella’s film doesn’t stint on the scares, the gore or the social commentary but the violence works twofold — it reveals the self-hate that gay teens are made to feel as well as the homophobic forces that the queer community stares down every day. “Leviticus” isn’t a polemic, nor does it pound its parable fists too often, but it has plenty to say about homophobia within the constraints of the horror genre. It’s also successful as a sizzling romance about two ill-fated young lovers staring down the fears that want to bind them. It’s one hell of a debut for Chiarella and a calling card for his two lead actors. Props, too, to director of photography Tyson Perkins for cloaking it with moody shadows that fosters its creepy feel. Details: 3½ stars out of 4; opens in theaters June 19.
**“The Death of Robin Hood”: **Movie theaters have traditionally offered refuge from a sweltering summer heat wave, but those seeking such refuge at this film, figuring the titular iconic folk hero is a safe bet, should know that director Michael Sarnoski is serving up a revisionist take on Mr. Hood. Only those with a strong tolerance for graphic violence should dare to enter. “The Death of Robin Hood” simulates the miserable, teeth-chattering bitter coldness of medieval England so well, it might even give you a case of frostbite. And it is in such details — the exacting production design, the facile editing, the earthy costumes and, best of all, Pat Scola’s cinematography, which makes you all but taste the grit for two hours — where Sarnoski’s brutal tear-down of an ageless mythical hero emerges as astonishing achievement. Ditto Hugh Jackman’s unerring performance — perhaps his finest dramatic work yet — as a savage, unfeeling thug and unrepentant murderer and thief. But the film itself is an impenetrable iceberg, one that leaves you cold and indifferent while it dismantles the poster boy for rebellion and replaces him with a killer staring into the empty maw of his dying soul. Some will take umbrage about tinkering about with the Robin Hood mythos like that. So be it. But the biggest beef to be had is in Sarnoski’s insistence to bludgeon us with pulverizing violence, which grows tiresome and repetitive in the carnage-spewing initial 30 minutes. The director of “Pig” and “A Quiet Place: Day One” goes overboard as he de-romanticizes everything about Robin Hood, with Jackman never once faltering in conveying through resigned, hollow eyes a man who is damned. True to the film’s title, the blood-drenching goaded on by Little John (Bill Skarsgård) brings a very wounded Robin to a hillside priory where his spiritual and physical wounds get tended to by Sister Brigid (Jodie Comer). He also has meaningful if curious encounters with a leper (Murray Bartlett), a traumatized girl (Faith Delaney) and a wounded young man (Noah Jupe) from his past. Those interactions mark an intentional metaphysical counterweight to the film’s start, and while the “The Death of Robin Hood’s” ultimate message is worth chewing on, there is no denying that film’s bleakness keeps us at bay, and emotionally unmoved. Details: 2½ stars; opens June 19 in theaters.
“Girls Like Girls”: There’s much to appreciate about Hayley Kiyoko’s heartfelt directorial debut. A major plus is how the singer/author/director throws us back to the anguish and passion of our first love. Based on Kiyoko’s song and her own YA novel, “Girls Like Girls” is a simple tale of how Oregon teens Coley (Maya da Costa) and Sonya (Myra Molloy) over the course of one early 2000s summer start to realize that, yup, they’re attracted to each other in an inseparable way. Kiyoko captures the longing and the agony that someone who’s smitten experiences — the nervously checking and waiting for an email response from their crush to validate how they’re feeling. She’s also adept at illustrating just how overwhelming heartbreak can be when you’re a teen. It’s the end of the world as we know it. Her leads have instant chemistry too, with da Costa tapping into the “sad eyes” of an introvert coping with a new town and the abrupt re-emergence of her father (Zach Braff) in her life. (The father-daughter dynamic is one of the film’s strongest assets, but doesn’t get plumbed as much as it should.) Coley’s trajectory does trod familiar YA ground, whereas Sonya’s less-developed storyline begs for further exploration since her issues — excessive drinking, a boyfriend (Levon Hawke), the pressure to be the best in dance competitions — set you up to want and expect more. We also hear, in cursory dialogue only, that Sonya’s mother might disapprove of this relationship, yet this is relegated to the background, which further softens the tension. “Girls Like Girls” gives us a sweet story about two girls in love, but it could have been even more effective if it just dug a little deeper. Details: 2½ stars; opens June 19 in theaters.
“Unidentifed”: The discovery of a young woman’s bludgeoned corpse in the desert outside of Saudi Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh propels 29-year-old true-crime podcast fan Noelle Al Saffan (Mila Al Zahrani) into action as she conducts her undercover Nancy Drew-like investigation. Her bold overtures don’t go down so well with those around her in Haifaa al-Mansour’s tricky mystery that circles some of the issues she raised in what is her “Saudi trilogy” — in particular the restrictive traditions enforced on women in the Middle East. “Unidentified” is, and yet isn’t, a departure from the Saudi Arabian trailblazer’s earlier works, the exceptional “Wadjda” and “The Perfect Candidate.” That’s because Noelle’s a different type of protagonist, portrayed confidently by Al Zahrani, a woman contending with her own loss while trying to gain a more prominent job than being the scanner of a police documents. The list of suspects swell, as in an Agatha Christie novel, as Noelle’s unorthodox snooping about leads to surprise twists. One of its most inspired aspects is the presence of a true-crime/makeup tip podcaster Noelle is obsessed with. The clash between the two dynamics — one extolling beauty, the other detailing gruesome crimes — makes for an oil-vinegar mix that speaks to the tug of war women experience between using the beauty versus their brains. Why is it such a prominent part of the film? You’ll find out at the end. And while “Unidentified” doesn’t carry as much thematic weight as the previous two films in al-Mansour’s trilogy, it does know how to jolt you out of your seat when it counts. Details: 3 stars; opens June 19 in select theaters.
— Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.