The Reflecting Skin

At times this cruel, bizarre, yet, striking film with its hypnotic cinematography of vast, golden wheat fields and lonely, bleak farmhouses was a literal work of art.

Yes. In many ways, "The Reflecting Skin" was what you would call a "horror" film, but, unlike so many horror films of today it, thankfully, relied more on stylized craft (which, I'm sure, isn't likely to satisfy the blood-lust of most horror movie fans) rather than on gut-churning spectacle.

For anyone who enjoys and appreciates "alternate" horror, "The Reflecting Skin" (most definitely) delivers its weird, grotesque, and grim-faced story with a unique flare as it skillfully weaves together the ragged threads of shattered childhood innocence, small-town eeriness, and Romantic/Gothic dread.

To be sure - "The Reflecting Skin" is far from being flawless, but, all the same, its fascinating imagery and disturbing unpleasantness is sure to leave a strong and lasting impression on the mind long after it's all over.

Reflecting Skin is in many ways a unique creation. It operates at many levels, each of which should be taken on its own terms and understood within its own logic. Devastating social critique is entangled together with brilliantly shot natural landscapes (especially the combination of azure skies and sweeping fields of golden wheat). Dark and semi-psychotic scenes of Seth's father's self-immolation are entwined with the gentle lyricism of Cameron's "falling in love" with the "vampire woman," Dolphin Blue. Taken together, all these elements produce a dark, unsettling, relentlessly haunting atmosphere of the most profound spiritual crisis. Reflecting Skin is about the rock-bottom of socio-cultural devastation, it is about the wasteland lying inside each of us.

Philip Ridley shows us the isolated world totally devoid of all GENUINE sense of moral direction. The actor who plays a 9-year old Seth is absolutely excellent in portraying a frightened, well-meaning rural boy who has already absorbed all the unspeakable cruelty of his family and wider local milieu. The greatest nighmare of the film, it seems to me, is the destructively stubborn denial within which all characters are deeply and inextricably mired. There is nothing they are afraid more of than looking at themselves, at the profound evil which had already turned their souls into the most frightening desert. They are prepared to look around for vampires, witches and other incarnations of evil rather than to confront the layers of hypocrisy, sanctimony, and callousness within which they are hopelessly bogged down. They are blind to their own faults but are filled with immeasurable hate towards the "evil forces" out there. One is simply astonished at how successfully Ridley portrays the reservoirs of hatred and existential frustration hovering over the settlement. The movie traces how this hatred, this stubborn blindness progressively corrodes and ruins an impoverished rural community in the mid1950s. This movie is in many ways an examination of the local and deeply psychological sources of fascism (not in its more historical and specific meaning but as a cultural phenomenon of the modern world). Seth's desperate shriek for "salvation" amid the rays of the slowly setting sun and clouds of dust is perhaps the most powerful and unsettling scene in the film. Yet, watch closely: Seth's face is not covered with tears and genuine grief! His soul has been turned into stone -- he has grown to accept the ubiquity of death and cruelty. He will grow up to be a truly scary human being, able to kill and plunder with no remorse or doubt.

Great cinematographic gem. Should be appreciated by everybody interested in challenging, controversial, and ambiguous art. Profound social and even religious message about the evils of sanctimonious fundamentalism of any type of faith.

Ok that anyone thought this was funny must mean that they are two years old or that they are mentally slow and cant think. There is alot of people on here who post reviews who cant think. It must be some new disease you get by watching eddie murphy movies like haunted Mansion. This film is beautifully shot and captures the isolation and pain of growing up when you are stuck in the middle of a family crisis. The film is easy to follow and makes perfect sense throughout. There is never anything that is hard to understand or relate to if you have even half a brain. The metaphors with the vampires are very easy to understand. I would say its even something a 12 year old would understand although this film is not for kids. I wont list any details cuz i dont want to spoil it for you but if you enjoy dark films with something more to say that life sucks then this film will touch you and leave you breathless i think. Its one of my favorites and i hope you give it a try. You wont be disappointed.

I don't get why this is classified as horror? I watched this because I heard it was a drama about child abuse, which I suppose is partially true. It is filled with truly terrible people, but there is no horror in the traditional sense to speak of. Yes, people get lit on fire, animals are either tortured or torture is described, and and that's just the tip of the ice burg here. However, you may read that going "Sounds like horror to me", it isn't presented in that way, however, it is written both hamfistedly moralistic and morally vague, what with the characters who describe awful things as though they are talking about a recipe for scones at times.

Many will call this artsy fartsy, and I suppose they are not wrong, it definitely has ambitions for high art. If you have watched any of the films by Todd Solondz and liked them, you will enjoy this(I don't like Solondz, but I did enjoy this film, so it isn't a prerequisite). His films are all shock, and little style, whereas the reflecting skin is a highly allegorical tale shot in a beautiful and artistic matter. The shots of fields of grain are just breathtakingly beautiful.

The acting here is fantastic, especially given the surreal and bizarre events of the film. Even the child actors do a great job. Again, technically this film is so well-made, it is one of the prettiest films, at times, I have watched. who thought a wheat field could look so beautiful? Some people may see flaws in the script due to it's horrible characters, but it is obvious this film was not written to have characters you like... So that is not a flaw in the script, it is personal preference of the viewer. The main child character, somehow garners sympathy, even though he is just as awful, if not more so than the adults.

This film stands the test of time, and far exceeds many of the films that were it's contemporaries in most regards, but as technically proficient as it is, it is not a film for the masses. If you look at this as an allegory for the end of childhood innocence and death, it will probably make a heck of a lot more sense.

God Bless ~Amy

The ambiguity defines this webb of many subplots. A splendid cinematography and fall of a boy, step by step from childhood. Difficult to define it, it is more than a horror and maybe a dark trip across near realities comfortable to ignore. Important - the gorgeous cinematography and the inspired performances.