Ever since making his feature-length directorial debut on the Academy Award-winning sci-fi modern classic Ex Machina, Alex Garland’s work behind the camera has continued to become increasingly abstract, but it’s hard to see how he can make things any more existentially nightmarish than he did with twisted folk horror Men.
Netflix’s psychological thriller Annihilation was an ambitious genre piece that didn’t pull any punches, with FX miniseries Devs destined to spark discussion, debate, and brand new theories on every rewatch. As for Men? Well, Garland knew a lot of people weren’t going to care for it, but he didn’t care in the slightest.
The marketing campaign painted the picture of a movie that was destined to be polarizing, and Men certainly didn’t disappoint on that front, as evidenced by respective Rotten Tomatoes ratings of 69 and 39 percent from critics and audiences. The unwieldy narrative came under fire, but nobody was expecting an A-to-B story from a storyteller as singular as Garland, either.
Jessie Buckley’s Harper leaves the city behind to hole up in a country manor following a personal tragedy, but her existence swiftly becomes the stuff of nightmares after she begins to encounter the local residents. Going much further than that is giving away too much, but the mixed response hasn’t stopped Men from doing a turn on streaming.
Per FlixPatrol, the reality-bending mindf*ck has soared on the iTunes most-watched list this week, and has even landed on the Top 10 in the United Kingdom. It’s definitely weird, but whether or not it’s wonderful is entirely down to personal preference.
Published: Aug 24, 2022 04:06 am