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‘Toxic’ Review: Unstinting Lithuanian Teen Drama Follows Catwalk Dreams In a Concrete Nightmare
Saulė Bliuvaitė's debut 'Toxic' observes two aspiring models as they put their bodies through hell — and their souls through something darker still.
Set in an industrial Lithuanian town where even the asphalt has seen better days, Saulė Bliuvaitė ‘s impressively tough-minded debut feature is uncompromising in its depiction of the punishment and self-abuse endured by girls enrolled at a fly-by-night modeling academy — where the vague promise of an escape to pretty much anywhere is enough to motivate frightening extremes of disordered eating and body modification. After one brutal brawl over a stolen pair of jeans, she finally finds an ally in small, spiky blonde hellion Kristina (Ieva Rupeikaitė), who can acknowledge what the other, appearance-fixated bullies are loath to admit about Marija: She’s tall and physically striking, in a way that can open doors for working-class girls without obvious prospects. Marija’s rising social stock as a potential supermodel gets the two girls increased attention from older local boys, though they’re unprepared for the intricacies of sex as currency — while Kristina naively attempts to barter her body for money, as the modeling school’s financial demands predictably and extortionately spiral.
Or read this on Variety
