Latest news with #smalltown
WIRED
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- WIRED
'Eddington' Director Ari Aster Couldn't Stand ‘Living in the Internet.' So He Made a Movie About It
Jul 18, 2025 7:00 AM Ari Aster tells WIRED he wrote Eddington during the height of the pandemic and BLM protests. The Western depicts the explosive consequences of his characters' conspiracy-fueled social media diets. Still from Eddington. Photograph: Richard Foreman/A24 Like a lot of us, Ari Aster spent the summer of 2020 trapped inside and scrolling on social media. Also like a lot of us, the experience left him feeling pretty bad. 'I was living on Twitter,' Aster tells WIRED, 'and it was really agitating me.' But unlike most people, the director of Hereditary , Midsommar , and Beau is Afraid wasn't just doomscrolling on Twitter to pass the time. He was doing research. That summer, Aster wrote the script for his latest film, Eddington , a modern western set in a small southwest American town during the height of both the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement. In theaters on July 18, the film deftly explores how social media and the internet in general have fractured modern society, placing us all in our own personally tailored worlds—and then descends into violence when those worlds collide. Aster depicts this twisted vision of modern society by regularly pointing his camera straight at the Facebook and Twitter feeds of his main characters, giving the audience a look into the conspiracy theories and memes influencing their every decision. To create a realistic approximation of social media, Aster went straight to the source. 'I started making a collection of things from my timeline to remember when I made the film,' he says. 'I also cultivated different algorithms to see what somebody else might be receiving. I started different accounts and created an archive. That was very helpful in making the film, even in post, when we were deciding what tweets to show on certain phones.' These glimpses into the interior lives of Eddington 's characters—the movie stars Joaquin Phoenix as a populist sheriff who runs for mayor against a corrupt, liberal incumbent played by Pedro Pascal—help ground a story that pivots wildly at times from cryptic political commentary to heightened carnage. Aster takes the classic American western and transforms it into something new: a messy thriller on the frontier of technological progress. In an interview with WIRED, the director unpacks the many meanings and inspirations behind his provocative new project. The Tech Revolution Is 'Dehumanizing' Aster traces our current dystopian moment back to the rise of the smartphone. 'Society has been atomized and fractured over the last however many years,' he says. 'I guess this all began once we started living in the internet—when we could carry the internet on our person.' Eddington takes this theory and makes it a baseline reality, exploring a world where no two characters seem to be living in the same reality or even speaking the same language, whether that divide is political or generational. In one scene, a teenage boy sits at the dinner table and explains why he needs to reject his own whiteness. His parents' response is a mix of shock and confusion. 'This is a movie about people living in different realities who are unreachable to each other,' Aster says, musing that the modern internet has changed humanity in ways we likely still don't fully understand. 'I do think the technological revolution is a mostly dehumanizing one,' he adds. Eddington also explores conspiracy theories and the podcasters and YouTubers who spread them online in exchange for influence and profit. Phoenix's character will often return home to hear some disembodied voice spouting baseless claims through the speakers of an abandoned laptop. Later, his wife (Emma Stone) or mother-in-law (Deirdre O'Connell) will regurgitate those fringe theories over breakfast. Again, Aster built this dark corner of his world out of real-life source material. 'One thing was inspired by somebody I heard on the street in New York with a microphone,' he says. 'I wrote that down for later. Others were pulled from different corners of the internet.' Aster's overall goal with Eddington was to convey the overwhelming feeling of being online today, while still making a compelling movie. 'It was important to get as many voices in the cacophony and represent as many corners of the internet as possible—to make a coherent story about the incoherent miasma we are living in,' he says. 'I wish we could have shown more, but we did as much as we could without it becoming distracting or no longer supporting the story.' AI Is Creating An 'Era of Total Distrust' Eddington may primarily be a movie about how social media is breaking our brains, but there's another technological innovation Aster was careful to represent in his movie: artificial intelligence. The film begins with a plan to build an AI-training data center on the edge of town, a plot point that resurfaces several times throughout the story (including in the election plotline, with Phoenix's character campaigning against the shady business interests behind the new facility). 'It is mostly peripheral,' Aster says, 'but for me, it's the heart of the film. This is a movie about people living through Covid, navigating a crisis. Meanwhile, just outside of town, another crisis is being cooked up.' In a recent interview with Letterboxd, the director opined that it's 'obviously already too late' to stop AI. But when pressed about the pros and cons of artificial intelligence, Aster describes it with a mix of wonder and fear. 'I'm in awe of what it can do, but I'm also very disturbed by it,' he tells me. 'We're living in an era of total distrust. This kind of imagery could lead to the end of video or audio evidence.' As a director, he worries the ability to create transcendent art is being 'flattened' by generative AI tools, while at the same time admitting that it's opening up the film industry to more people than ever. 'It's been democratized in an exciting way,' he says. 'There are more possibilities now, but something's also going away.' In his own very Ari Aster way, the twisted mind behind some of the most disturbing visuals of the 21st Century (from the unexpected decapitation that kicks off Hereditary to the literal penis monster in Beau Is Afraid ) already misses the era of more uncanny AI imagery. 'In the beginning, when these systems were hallucinating and creating weird imagery — 12 fingers, bizarre stuff—that was more interesting to me,' he says. 'The more polished it gets, the less exciting and more alarming it becomes.' About That Ending … Warning: Spoilers ahead for the end of Eddington. Despite sometimes feeling like a Coen Brothers western on amphetamines, Eddington is impressively grounded throughout its nearly two-and-a-half-hour runtime—until the final act. After Phoenix's character kills Pascal's and then frames the local BLM protesters for the murder, a plane full of actual anti-fascist terrorists flies into town and starts blowing everything up. Reality quickly gives way to video game logic as Phoenix sprints through the town under the cover of darkness, firing machine guns into the night as he's pursued by faceless Antifa soldiers. 'At the end, he gets to live in his own action movie,' Aster says. 'I definitely wanted the movie to start feeling like Call of Duty or Grand Theft Auto.' While Aster leaves the meaning of this sequence up for interpretation, there's one clear way to understand Eddington 's finale. The film is taking those unhinged conspiracy theories and Facebook posts and transforming them into reality. The result feels like watching an alt-right fever dream in which the woke terrorists we all know never existed suddenly show up on your doorstep with guns and explosives. 'The film is about paranoid people,' Aster concurs, 'and by the end, it becomes paranoid. It becomes gripped by their worldview. Depending on your beliefs or your algorithm, that's where it becomes either satire or a movie about what was really happening.' That's about as far as the director will get to explaining the ultimate meaning behind his movie. While he admits to having a 'very strong political stance' that he hopes is obvious by the time the credits roll, he's wary of making a film that intentionally alienates anyone. After all, the point of Eddington isn't that one side is necessarily right while the other is wrong, it's that social media has broken all of our brains. The only way to repair our shattered worldview is to come together across the divisions the internet and its algorithms are only making more pronounced. 'I wanted to give as broad a picture of the environment as I could without being dismissive or condescending,' Aster says. 'I see all these characters as people who care about the world and know something's wrong. They're just seeing it through different, distorted windows.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Rolling Hills And Charming Inns Are The Calling Cards Of This Quaint Virginia Town
Orange is a small town with so much personality. There's a lot of history behind the town of Orange, Virginia, which celebrated its 150th birthday in 2022. Nestled in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains, as part of Virginia's Piedmont region, Orange is a quiet hamlet of around 5,000 folks that's within easy driving distance of more populated locales like Charlottesville (20 miles), Richmond (60 miles), and Washington, D.C. (70 miles). If you take a trip to this lesser-known destination, expect small town charm from shops and restaurants in its Main Street district, hospitable hosts at local bed and breakfasts, and a lesson in history thanks to the town's proximity to U.S. president and Founding Father James Madison's Montpelier. Here are the 10 best things to do in Orange, Virginia. What To Do In Orange, Virginia Learn The Town History There are several spots around town where you can get a glimpse into what Orange was like during its early days. The historic Orange County Courthouse, built in 1859 at the center of downtown, is a good place to start. A short walk away, you can learn all about the town's history at the James Madison Museum of Orange County Heritage. Finally, stop into the Historic Orange Train Station, which was built in 1909 and now hosts the county's visitor's center, to get more general information about the town and its railroad past. 129 Caroline Street, Orange, VA 22960; 540-672-1776 Visit James Madison's Montpelier The big attraction near Orange is the historic plantation and lifelong home of James Madison known as Montpelier. Visitors to the national landmark have an opportunity to not only see the place that one of our Founding Fathers called home, but to learn about his impact—both good and bad—on the country. The site serves as a memorial to both James Madison and enslaved people. It's also a museum of American history and a place to learn about the Constitution. Exhibits and galleries like 'Color Through A Child's Eyes', 'The Mere Distinction of Colour,' and 'Mysteries of Montpelier' aim to tell a more complete story of the historic site and the time in which it was built. Visit the site on the first weekend in November to attend the Montpelier Hunt Races, a steeplechase horse race that's taken place here for almost 90 years. 1350 Constitution Highway, Montpelier Station, VA 22957; 540-672-2728 Get Inspired At The Arts Center For more than three decades, The Arts Center has been a hub for Orange's creative community and appreciators of the arts. Visitors can check out two gallery spaces: the storefront Morrin Gallery, which features 6 to 8 curated exhibitions annually, and the Community Gallery, which hosts artist-led projects, residencies, and other community programming. The center also offers regular ceramic studio time, classes, workshops, camps, and more. 129 E. Main Street, Orange, VA 22960; 540-672-7311 Go Skydiving If you want to take a walk—or should we say jump—on the wild side, book a session with Skydive Orange, which has been taking folks high into the sky since 1977. As one of the most established skydiving centers in the country, this is a great place to finally check off that bucket list item. You'll free fall from a height of 13,500 feet in the air, leaving plenty of time to soak in the surrounding sights of rolling hills, dramatic mountains, and all-around stunning scenery. 11269 Hangar Road, Orange, VA 22960; 703-SKY-DIVE Shop Downtown Strolling and shopping along Orange's Main Street is the perfect afternoon activity. Restaurants, boutiques, and locally owned specialty stores line the cheery streets, so there's plenty to pique everyone's interest. A couple of extra-special spots include Grelen Downtown and Objects on Main. Grelen Downtown is a well-curated gift shop and sister store to The Market at Grelen, a European-style garden shop and café located on a 1,000-acre nursery just down the road from Orange. If you love Grelen's downtown outpost, take the quick drive to its flagship, where you'll also find six miles of hiking trails and u-pick fruit in certain seasons. Objects on Main is your go-to shop for eclectic home décor, art, furniture, apparel, and more. Where To Eat & Drink In Orange, Virginia Try The Quail Lewis At Spoon & Spindle Celebrated chef Edna Lewis, who's often referred to as the Mother of Soul Food or the Grand Dame of Southern Cooking, was born and raised in Orange County. Her style of cooking contributed greatly to the world's understanding of Southern cuisine. At Spoon & Spindle, Chef Lewis is honored with a dish called Quail Lewis (quail stuffed with wild rice and white grapes). Open for lunch and dinner, as well as brunch on Sunday, Spoon & Spindle offers an elevated Southern fusion menu where dishes like Boudin Spring Rolls, Bourbon Glazed Pork Loin, and Po'Mi (a po'boy-banh mi mashup) all share space on the same menu. 323 North Madison Road, Suite H, Orange, VA 2290; 540-360-3004 Enjoy A Farm To Table Dinner At Forked on Main As a 'farm to fork' restaurant, this downtown eatery is committed to creating tantalizing dishes using locally sourced meats, produce, and ingredients whenever possible. The dinner menu offers a little of everything, from Shrimp Scampi Risotto to Grilled Chicken Skewers to Steak & Frites. Come early to catch happy hour (Wednesday through Friday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.). For dinner and a show, make a Thursday reservation; there's live music from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. 124 West Main Street Orange, VA 22960; 540-308-7660 Get A Classic Meal At Main Street Tavern If you've got a hankering for a traditional meal, whether that be a hamburger with fries or meatloaf and mashed potatoes, Main Street Tavern is the place to satisfy your cravings. Snag a seat on its charming alley patio, or in the cozy dining room, order a craft cocktail or beer, and get ready to be impressed. 110 E Main St., Orange, VA 22960; 540-661-0004 Grab A Pint And Slice At Iron Pipe Alewerks The father-son duo behind Iron Pipe Alewerks started their business in their family garage. Over a decade later, they've upgraded their operation to a brewpub inside the 1929 American Silk Mill Factory building downtown. Several of Iron Pipe's brews have won awards, like their OC Light, which won the 2023 gold medal in the U.S. Beer Open, and the Gandalf the Haze, which won bronze in the same competition. Since nothing goes with beer like pizza, Iron Pipe also makes an awesome brick-oven pizza. 323 N Madison Road Orange, VA 22960; 540-522-0673 Where To Stay In Orange, Virginia Choose a Charming Inn Hotels and home rentals are both great depending on the vacation vibes you're hoping to achieve, but in Orange, the undisputed best place to stay is an inn. Though the town is small, its selection of inviting inns is large. The Inn at Willow Grove is the ultimate in elegance and luxury with a 3,000-square-foot spa, full-service restaurant, and spacious suites. For a touch of romance, check into the 1895 restored plantation home known as the Mayhurst Inn. Its rooms feature period décor, Italian marble fireplaces, and whirlpool tubs. The Holladay House's six guest rooms are situated conveniently in the heart of downtown. For an extra- special experience, make a reservation for high tea complete with porcelain teapots, finger sandwiches, and pretty pastries. Read the original article on Southern Living Solve the daily Crossword
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Killer space meatballs to cursed shrubbery: Stephen King's TV adaptations – rated bad to best
There are several things we have come to expect from small-screen adaptations of Stephen King's many, many novels and short stories and they are, generally speaking, these: there will be a small town beset by an Ageless Evil. There will be children, some of whom will be dead, others merely telekinetic and/or screaming in pyjamas. There will be blood. And flannel shirts. And dialogue so awful you will want to bludgeon it with a spade and inter it in an ancient burial ground, despite the suspicion that it will rise from the dead and continue to torment you. Like the generally superior film versions of the author's works, some of these TV adaptations will, in fact, be very enjoyable. Others will not. And then there is The Institute (MGM+), a new adaptation of a middling 2019 thriller that manages to capture the endearingly wonky essence of King's genius by being both extremely well crafted and, at times, astonishingly silly. But how does it measure up to its predecessors? Let us clamber into a flannel shirt and, screaming pre-emptively, explore the best and worst of small-screen Stephen King. The Shining (1997) Enraged by Stanley Kubrick's magnificent interpretation of his 1977 novel (too little substance, apparently), King responded with a 'definitive' adaptation of his own. Cue this two-part abomination, in which writer Jack Torrance (Steven Weber) terrorises his family with his definitive denim blouson and definitive inability to act. Further definitives: CGI topiary, a young Danny Torrance seemingly incapable of speaking without snuffling (sinusitis?) and a final showdown consisting of a mallet-wielding Jack chasing his nasal son past the same endlessly looped stretch of hotel corridor. Under the Dome (2013-2015) A thunderously bovine fusion of small-town soap and big-budget sci-fi that includes plucky teens, military machinations, a soundtrack packed with SUDDEN and UNECESSARY NOISES and a bit where a pensioner in dungarees shouts, 'OHHHH SHIIIIIIT' at half a sliced-in-two CGI cow. Stuffed from the word go, frankly, due to a premise so risible (alien egg makes indestructible transparent dome descend on town) you wouldn't be surprised if the remaining half of the sliced-in-two CGI cow turned to camera and begged to be put out of its misery. Storm of the Century (1999) A tiny Maine island is besieged by exposition when a stranger in a small hat arrives during a blizzard. The upshot? Tedium. Plus? Levitating guns, CGI snow and hundreds of minor characters, one of whom will, every half hour or so, extend their neck out of the gloom to announce a terrible new subplot before telescoping it back in again while everyone else nods and says, 'yuh'. Not an adaptation, per se, but an original 'novel for TV' (© Stephen King), which is shorthand for '257 minutes of Stephen King being emphatically Stephen King only more so'. The Stand (2020-2021) The apex of the 'large group of out-of-focus extras stands around nodding while a foregrounded hunk expounds on the best way to tackle whatever is threatening the community' genre. In this instance, the threat is twofold. Namely 1) a viral apocalypse and 2) a script that takes King's outstanding 1978 fantasy by its ankles and shakes it until its brain falls out. Makes even the 1994 adaptation (Gary Sinise shouting 'Noooo' at a field for six hours) look tolerable by dint of bewildering flashbacks, zero tension, general confusion, Whoopi Goldberg and wolves. The Langoliers (1995) Some people disappear from a plane, some other people argue about it, one of these people gets eaten by angry space meatballs, the end. A terrible reminder that the worst King has always been sci-fi King, this three-hour duffer has more in common with the appalling 'shouting ensemble' disaster films of the 70s than anything 'one' might wish to watch with one's 'TV dinner'. The result? A miniseries so volcanically dull you had to prick your telly with a fork, like a baked potato, to let the yawns out. The Institute (2025) A tyrannical bootcamp for telekinetic children, you say? With a small-town backdrop, federal bastardry and eccentrics in plaid prophesying on porches? Why, 'tis season four of Stranger Things! Except it isn't. Welcome, instead, to a very solemn eight-part thriller, in which awful things happen slowly to good actors (not least Joe Freeman, son of Martin Freeman and Amanda Abbington) and YA friendships bloom despite the presence of lines of the 'you are about to participate in saving the world!' variety. It is, if you will, Stranger Kings. The Tommyknockers (1993) Nothing says 1993 like Jimmy Smits being punched by an alien while shouting 'Woah' in chinos. And so it proved with this confounding oddity, a sci-fi potboiler that cartwheels into the 'actually hugely watchable' category by virtue of everything from acting to special effects being coated in an almost certainly accidental layer of camp. Cue swirling green gas, comedy dogs, cursed shrubbery, killer dolls, xenomorphs tiptoeing gingerly around a cardboard spaceship and the line, 'I'm gonna nuke you!' Salem's Lot (1979) Not just the finest Stephen King TV adaptation, but one of the finest horror 'events' of the 1970s, by jove. The reason? Genuinely nightmarish imagery (dead schoolboys clawing at bedroom windows, bald vampires rising slowly from kitchen floors, etc) and a near-constant sense of clammy dread. Further proof that when it comes to miniseries, it pays to employ a proper director (Tobe 'Poltergeist' Hooper, in this instance) as opposed to, say, an upturned bucket in a turtleneck. It (1990) King's 1,100-page masterpiece becomes a wildly memorable miniseries, with the obligatory horrible bits (bloodied plugholes, whispering plugholes, murderous transdimensional entities bursting out of plugholes, etc) accompanied by a smart pace and rare emotional investment in the fate of its trembling young protagonists. And then there is, of course, Tim Curry as Pennywise the Clown; a performance of such grotesque enormousness it threatens to explode out of the screen. The Outsider (2020) HBO steeples its fingers over King's 2018 midweight mystery and proceeds to say, 'Hmm' slowly … across 10 episodes … of glacially paced … child murder and …Detective Ben Mendelsohn's … investigative … jeans. And yet. The direction is excellent, the themes (buried grief! The nature of faith!) are explored thoughtfully rather than pounded feverishly with hammers and everything is marinated in that woozy greige lighting that indicates we are in the presence of Proper Acting and are thus unlikely to encounter, say, a pensioner in dungarees shouting, 'OHHHH SHIIIIIIT' at half a sliced-in-two CGI cow.
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Killer space meatballs to cursed shrubbery: Stephen King's TV adaptations – rated bad to best
There are several things we have come to expect from small-screen adaptations of Stephen King's many, many novels and short stories and they are, generally speaking, these: there will be a small town beset by an Ageless Evil. There will be children, some of whom will be dead, others merely telekinetic and/or screaming in pyjamas. There will be blood. And flannel shirts. And dialogue so awful you will want to bludgeon it with a spade and inter it in an ancient burial ground, despite the suspicion that it will rise from the dead and continue to torment you. Like the generally superior film versions of the author's works, some of these TV adaptations will, in fact, be very enjoyable. Others will not. And then there is The Institute (MGM+), a new adaptation of a middling 2019 thriller that manages to capture the endearingly wonky essence of King's genius by being both extremely well crafted and, at times, astonishingly silly. But how does it measure up to its predecessors? Let us clamber into a flannel shirt and, screaming pre-emptively, explore the best and worst of small-screen Stephen King. The Shining (1997) Enraged by Stanley Kubrick's magnificent interpretation of his 1977 novel (too little substance, apparently), King responded with a 'definitive' adaptation of his own. Cue this two-part abomination, in which writer Jack Torrance (Steven Weber) terrorises his family with his definitive denim blouson and definitive inability to act. Further definitives: CGI topiary, a young Danny Torrance seemingly incapable of speaking without snuffling (sinusitis?) and a final showdown consisting of a mallet-wielding Jack chasing his nasal son past the same endlessly looped stretch of hotel corridor. Under the Dome (2013-2015) A thunderously bovine fusion of small-town soap and big-budget sci-fi that includes plucky teens, military machinations, a soundtrack packed with SUDDEN and UNECESSARY NOISES and a bit where a pensioner in dungarees shouts, 'OHHHH SHIIIIIIT' at half a sliced-in-two CGI cow. Stuffed from the word go, frankly, due to a premise so risible (alien egg makes indestructible transparent dome descend on town) you wouldn't be surprised if the remaining half of the sliced-in-two CGI cow turned to camera and begged to be put out of its misery. Storm of the Century (1999) A tiny Maine island is besieged by exposition when a stranger in a small hat arrives during a blizzard. The upshot? Tedium. Plus? Levitating guns, CGI snow and hundreds of minor characters, one of whom will, every half hour or so, extend their neck out of the gloom to announce a terrible new subplot before telescoping it back in again while everyone else nods and says, 'yuh'. Not an adaptation, per se, but an original 'novel for TV' (© Stephen King), which is shorthand for '257 minutes of Stephen King being emphatically Stephen King only more so'. The Stand (2020-2021) The apex of the 'large group of out-of-focus extras stands around nodding while a foregrounded hunk expounds on the best way to tackle whatever is threatening the community' genre. In this instance, the threat is twofold. Namely 1) a viral apocalypse and 2) a script that takes King's outstanding 1978 fantasy by its ankles and shakes it until its brain falls out. Makes even the 1994 adaptation (Gary Sinise shouting 'Noooo' at a field for six hours) look tolerable by dint of bewildering flashbacks, zero tension, general confusion, Whoopi Goldberg and wolves. The Langoliers (1995) Some people disappear from a plane, some other people argue about it, one of these people gets eaten by angry space meatballs, the end. A terrible reminder that the worst King has always been sci-fi King, this three-hour duffer has more in common with the appalling 'shouting ensemble' disaster films of the 70s than anything 'one' might wish to watch with one's 'TV dinner'. The result? A miniseries so volcanically dull you had to prick your telly with a fork, like a baked potato, to let the yawns out. The Institute (2025) A tyrannical bootcamp for telekinetic children, you say? With a small-town backdrop, federal bastardry and eccentrics in plaid prophesying on porches? Why, 'tis season four of Stranger Things! Except it isn't. Welcome, instead, to a very solemn eight-part thriller, in which awful things happen slowly to good actors (not least Joe Freeman, son of Martin Freeman and Amanda Abbington) and YA friendships bloom despite the presence of lines of the 'you are about to participate in saving the world!' variety. It is, if you will, Stranger Kings. The Tommyknockers (1993) Nothing says 1993 like Jimmy Smits being punched by an alien while shouting 'Woah' in chinos. And so it proved with this confounding oddity, a sci-fi potboiler that cartwheels into the 'actually hugely watchable' category by virtue of everything from acting to special effects being coated in an almost certainly accidental layer of camp. Cue swirling green gas, comedy dogs, cursed shrubbery, killer dolls, xenomorphs tiptoeing gingerly around a cardboard spaceship and the line, 'I'm gonna nuke you!' Salem's Lot (1979) Not just the finest Stephen King TV adaptation, but one of the finest horror 'events' of the 1970s, by jove. The reason? Genuinely nightmarish imagery (dead schoolboys clawing at bedroom windows, bald vampires rising slowly from kitchen floors, etc) and a near-constant sense of clammy dread. Further proof that when it comes to miniseries, it pays to employ a proper director (Tobe 'Poltergeist' Hooper, in this instance) as opposed to, say, an upturned bucket in a turtleneck. It (1990) King's 1,100-page masterpiece becomes a wildly memorable miniseries, with the obligatory horrible bits (bloodied plugholes, whispering plugholes, murderous transdimensional entities bursting out of plugholes, etc) accompanied by a smart pace and rare emotional investment in the fate of its trembling young protagonists. And then there is, of course, Tim Curry as Pennywise the Clown; a performance of such grotesque enormousness it threatens to explode out of the screen. The Outsider (2020) HBO steeples its fingers over King's 2018 midweight mystery and proceeds to say, 'Hmm' slowly … across 10 episodes … of glacially paced … child murder and …Detective Ben Mendelsohn's … investigative … jeans. And yet. The direction is excellent, the themes (buried grief! The nature of faith!) are explored thoughtfully rather than pounded feverishly with hammers and everything is marinated in that woozy greige lighting that indicates we are in the presence of Proper Acting and are thus unlikely to encounter, say, a pensioner in dungarees shouting, 'OHHHH SHIIIIIIT' at half a sliced-in-two CGI cow.
Geek Vibes Nation
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Vibes Nation
'Saint Clare' Review - Bella Thorne Gives A Spell-Binding Performance In A Genre-Blending Thriller
Clare Bleecker (Bella Thorne) is nobody's fool. While living in a small town and reeling from tragedy, she spends her nights assassinating people of ill repute. A sole purpose drives her vengeful mission, and Clare finds herself haunted by voices that lead her to commit these gruesome acts. Saint Clare fashions itself as a mystery thriller brimming with subtext; however, the prospects become a little top-heavy, and the film never quite lives up to its outsized expectations. Still, a commanding performance manages to hold the movie together, making it a riveting watch. Driven by voices that lead her to kill ill-intended people, Clare attempts to live a quiet life with her grandmother in a sleepy town. Essentially friendless, she goes through life, shielding herself from the pain of her past. To the world, Clare appears shy but normal. What she hides is a vengeful killer on special orders. Be it from God or, at the very least, a higher power, she acts with righteous vengeance. When a recent kill sucks her down a rabbit hole, she finds herself tackling corruption, trafficking, and visions from the beyond. Saint Clare originates from the book 'Clare at Sixteen' by Don Roff. The film is a largely stripped-down version, giving us Clare's backstory through brief exposition and the use of flashbacks. The film establishes her as a modern-day Joan of Arc. However, there are attempts to make her into a real-life Cassandra, particularly as she channels her callings and becomes something of a symbol. As her only friend goes missing, Clare mounts a one-woman crusade that is both a mission of revenge and heroism. For much of the film, there is a clear prerogative that this is a gritty affair. The addition of a religious subtext to the intense subject matter of human trafficking makes this a white-knuckle thriller. Clare's tough, no-nonsense approach is applause-worthy, even as the film showcases the harsh reality of never-ending violence. On the one hand, this movie is a straightforward thriller with Clare acting as a vigilante or dark guardian angel. She is depicted as stalking the underbelly of society, moving through with a take-no-prisoners approach. Yet, the movie introduces another element. There's the religious subtext and design to construct Clare as both a Joan of Arc figure with the clairvoyance of a Cassandra, so it should come as no shock that there's a ghostly injection, too. We meet the character of Bob (Frank Whaley), who acts as a ghostly sidekick to Clare. In addition to being her connection to the great beyond and acting as an advisor, we also learn that he is a past victim of Clare. This angle is unique as it adds a touch of color to the movie's otherwise grim pallor. That being said, it does create a jarring tone. The conflation of thriller and supernatural elements is handled deftly, although at times, the movie seems undecided about which tone to fully embrace. For the quirks and minor shortcomings, this film allows Bella Thorne to shine. She delivers a brilliant, unhinged performance that showcases tremendous strength. Thorne maneuvers those comedic elements with grace and showcases a raw power. She is like a flickering candle throughout the film. Grasping at the foothold between the light and dark. Once the wick is gone and the flame dies out, the darkness rises. This power is magnetic, transforming Clare into a dark angel heroine, unrelenting and seemingly unstoppable. Thorne balances the duality of the character. Yet, she never overplays it in either direction, instead allowing her performance to breathe even as the action accelerates all around her. Saint Clare is far from the typical revenge thriller, though it does not shy entirely away from the genre. Where the movie truly finds its calling is in the blending of mysticism and action. When coupled with the showstopping performance by Thorne, this film feels like the opening act to what could, at the moment, be the first of a series. Saint Clare will debut in select theaters and on digital platforms on July 18, 2025, courtesy of Quiver Distribution.
