June 19th, 2023
Common Sense Media Age: 18+ Violence 5/5 Language 4/5
Drinking/Drugs 5/5 Sex 5/5
My Age Recommendation: 18+ (Due to graphic violence and gore throughout, aberrant/disturbing behavior and imagery throughout, strong language, and prolonged graphic nudity).
After watching other Mia Goth horror movies, I was surprised to see she was in another horror film so close to the release of MaXXXine (the third movie in the X series). When I looked up this movie to see where it was streaming, I was immediately met with a lot of news articles surrounding the controversy of both the content in this movie and if it was actually good, so I knew I had to see for myself. The story follows James and his wife Em vacationing in a resort on the fictional island of La Tolqua. La Tolqua itself is an extremely crime-ridden island with frequent murders directed at tourists, so all guests of the resort are told to not leave the perimeter of the resort. James, who is a failed writer with one book published, meets a woman named Gabi at the resort who claimed to be a fan, and the two join a group of Gabi's friends and explore La Tolqua despite the strict rule. When a murder occurs, the island's disturbing rule for crime: you'll either be executed, or if your rich enough, you can watch yourself die! Let me say, this movie wasn't as bad as some people say, however it was definitely not the 'best movie of 2023'. The story for the most part was great and so was the acting which delivered great sequences of straight-up deranged and aberrant behavior which added to the intense and disturbing moments in the film. The trippy visuals during the drug sequences and the cloning scenes were incredible. However, I had some problems with this film. For starters, the ending, while trying to make a meaningful statement about human nature without consequences, became incredibly confusing to the point where the final scene was not as impactful as I thought it would be. Some scenes seemed to be unnecessary or prolonged for too long, such as the orgy sequence being way to long (it was 5 minutes) and the hallucinated dream sequences being too long and graphic for it to not contribute to the main story. In the end, the underlying plot, great character development, and amazing characters in general were able to make this movie terrifying and disturbing, something many horror fans will enjoy. Overall, this movie was decent and should be seen by those who enjoy disturbing horror movies!
Comments