Paradise Hills 2019

One night in lockdown, when I had no idea what day it was or what time, just that I was awake and needed to be distracted; I chose Paradise Hills on Netflix because I had never heard of it.

I’ve gotten into a habit of avoiding film trailers as these days they spoil every surprise and there’s no joy in the first twenty minutes of a film if I know what’s going to happen and I’m just waiting for it.

I had no prior information going into Paradise Hills besides that Emma Roberts was on the cover and I like the projects she’s been choosing lately. In short, it was a good choice that I highly recommend if you’re looking for something to help ease the pain of whatever stage of lockdown you are in.

I would actually like to withhold any spoilers from you too, dear reader, because the plot twists in this film are such a fun ride and made it the enjoyable viewing it was (although I would absolutely watch it again.) Here’s what I will tell you:

Paradise Hills is aesthetically pleasing, with deep vibrant colors, uncanny imagery and characters that felt like real people despite existing in a thoroughly unreal world. The production design, the costumes, the make-up… everything is combined to create a world that simultaneously connotes feeling of Alice in Wonderland and Girl Interrupted. If both those stories took place in a fever dream. The events of the story seem to take place in a very short amount of time, maybe a week, and not a lot happens. There’s a handful of characters surrounded by extras, namely Roberts, Danielle Macdonald who is pleasant as ever, Awkwafina who is strange as ever and Eliza Gonzalez who is chic and cool opposite Mila Jovovich who is creepy.

The horror elements are subtle, the color pallet reads more like a Halsey music video than Hammer House and the characters, although unnerved, are not really frightened for the bulk of the film. Don’t expect Jason to come out of the bushes in a ski mask. Do expect to feel lulled into a false sense of security, violently torn out again then lulled right back in. It’s not just a horror film, it’s a thriller, it’s science fiction, it’s drama and might even have a little bit of romance.

After an otherworldly/futuristic wedding scene wherein Roberts character sings like a siren in a golden ballroom for no apparent reason, she wakes up in a strange place and reacts like anyone would, by trying to escape. In these early scenes we get an idea of the layout of the location. It’s very remote and removed from the rest of the world which creates a tense feeling of isolation. Roberts character is a prisoner of sorts and her captors are eerily kind and gentle.

The only men in the film are orderlies in the strange treatment center and a couple of terrible and oppressive love interests. There are some messages that could absolutely be read as feminist but the film is more concerned with world building, tension building and raising the stakes.

We all experience films differently so I can’t say you’ll walk away with the same feelings I did, but I felt clean, fresh and revitalized after this film. Is that too much of a reaction to 90 minutes of Hollywood? I found the narrative, the writing and the performances refreshing and I could tell the Director, Alice Waddington, had made something out of passion and not just a pay out. Give this one a watch if you like pretty things, mystery and gripping drama on top of your horror faves.

American Mary 2012

This is one of my all time favorite films that I have not been able to re-watch since having surgery. Once upon a time, I could watch all the gore in the world and not flinch, now I know the truth of body horror I think I’ll pass and please, consider this your content warning in regards to American Mary. I might, however, re-watch and skip through the more violent or suggestive scenes of the film to enjoy what I loved about it beforehand.

American Mary is a rape revenge film and I’m not usually a fan of those. I don’t like the whole message they usually send and I don’t think a woman needs to be assaulted to build character or become a kick-ass role model. I won’t say this film handled rape revenge better (although the fact it’s directed by women definitely frames the attack in a different way from, say, Last House On The Left.) What I will say is that after the aforementioned scene the film takes a turn into the wonderfully dark and equally colorful and I couldn’t help but fall in love with it.

The film follows Mary, a med student who aspires to become a surgeon. She is struggling with student debt, out on her own in the big city, far away from family and she turns to an exotic dance club for extra cash. During her interview, the owner of the club is interrupted. A man his people are torturing downstairs is going to die, they’re not finished with him yet and the owner asks Mary to stitch him up so they can continue.

This is a huge turning point for Mary who it seems is a good person who wouldn’t want to be involved in something like that. She is visibly scarred by the incident but tries to put it behind her. However, after accepting an invite to a senior lecturers house party and being assaulted, she turns to the club for help.

There are a few plot lines flowing alongside each other in this film. The first is Mary’s solution to her teacher’s crimes, the second is prompted by one of the dancers at the club, a woman who has had so much cosmetic surgery she barely looks human. She informs Mary of the money to be made in the body modification scene in their city. How people will pay big money to get a surgery they can’t otherwise get legitimately.

What do I love about this film? Well, I was drawn to it originally because I’ve loved the lead actress, Catherine Isabelle since her Ginger Snaps days. Her performance in American Mary is next level; she’s so genuine and believable as someone who has completely stopped giving a shit. She’s a good person doing bad things and it rings true. She’s angry, frustrated, pushed to her limit and working with the skills and tools she’s got left.

Again, there’s even a little bit of romance in the film and I can’t recommend it enough… unless you don’t like body horror or rape scenes… which is most of us isn’t it?

The Last Supper 1995

This one is very light on the horror but it does definitely have horror elements and a plot that will give you chills. The Last Supper follows a group of post grad students who hold a regular Sunday dinner to debate politics and current affairs. One winter night they let a stranded stranger stay for dinner but promptly discover he’s a racist and things turn sour. They “accidentally” kill him and rationalize their crime by convincing each other they’ve done the world a favor but like similar films of the mid nineties (Shallow Grave 1994), the more sinister members of the group start to drive the rest of them down a dark road while the weaker members slowly lose their minds.

I wouldn’t want to ruin the lovely surprises in this film so I’ll talk about the non-plot related things I loved about Last Supper. Firstly the dialogue and delivery of dialogue is a lot of fun. Like a drunken debate with your oppositional friends, with some thought-provoking arguments. The majority of the film takes place at a dinner table with a few scenes in the doorway or the garden. It’s a very simple set-up and its works because the dialogue is delivered expertly.

The production design and cinematography couple perfectly together to create a beautiful film with connotations of murder, isolation and mental illness. The color palette is dark and lush with deep black and vibrant reds and the ‘90s wardrobe is always good for a few laughs and some nostalgia/longing.

The characters in the film don’t start out evil, in fact for most of the film, most of the friends believe what they’re doing is good but as their confidence in their own lies begin to fragment, the true horrors start to rear their ugly heads. Have they come too far?

All three of these films are light on scares. I fell in love with them because of the talented leading ladies working alongside talented female Directors, approaching the genre through a unique lens. I think you will like them too.

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Written by Holly-Mae