Raw (2017)

User Review

• 

  Barneyonmovies

  7 / 10

  WHAT I LIKED: It would seem that those who like their films rare have a real soft spot for 'Raw,' as it is undoubtedly a very uncommon beast - a thematically ambitious and different horror film that's trying to be more than the genre standard thing. Yes it is definitely true that writer/director Julia Ducournau explores some great ideas in a very interesting way here as she amusingly personifies things using cannibalism with a kind of over-the-top madness that frequently makes you smile as much as it makes you wince. In that regard it's often rather compatible to 'Get Out,' a film that also takes its ideas and stretches them to a kind of crazy and horrible extremity for us to gawp at and ponder upon. This is one fine film to gawp at too, as not only is the gory detail hugely repulsive; the cinematography and editing is extremely fitting and yet strangely beautiful too.
  WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: Unfortunately, where the film looses for me is that it feels less like one well-constructed narrative, and more so a slightly messy display of greatness. Yes whilst Ducournau has a lot of fascinating things to show off, the fact she fails to fully connect and round out her ideas and story-strands means that 'Raw' lacks a way into its tension and narrative, and instead winds up feeling a little too close to shock-for-shock's sake kind of stuff.
  VERDICT: An admirable and experimental horror movie that just doesn't quite gel; 'Raw' shows a lot of potential, but equally fails to live up to it.

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