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For God’s Sake, Let’s Talk About a Different Movie

For months, cinephiles have claimed to find substance in a certain body-horror movie. I am politely asking you to look elsewhere.

Writer-director Aaron Schimberg spins a darkly comedic, profoundly existential, and gimlet-eyed film from this narrative setup, with Oswald eventually weaving himself intimately into Ingrid’s play, her life, and Guy’s imagined future. One of the biggest sins of this Oscar season is that critics and audiences are projecting upon a certain movie a substance it doesn’t actually have.Elisabeth injects herself with a neon-green liquid, only for a younger, prettier version of herself to be birthed bloodily from her back in the form of Sue (Margaret Qualley). “Oh, my old friend, you haven’t changed a bit,” Oswald says, as Edward’s face fills the screen, Stan’s tight smile and gaze directed at the camera.Edward is paralyzed by the realization that shedding your skin, your name, and your history isn’t transformation but a futile disavowal.

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