The Stylist

...The Demon Barber of Creep Street.

Not much to say, but this horror/drama about a mentally unfit hair stylist who cuts a little too deep gave me Stepfather II vibes, but mostly reminded me of the original Maniac from 1980 and Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer from 1986. Nothing wrong with that, it was enjoyable and everyone was spot on in their roles.

I would question the pacing and direction of the story even though it was easy to follow. At least the gore was decent. I even had to turn away in a few spots. The Lead, who looked way too much like Judy Greer, really sold the psycho.

Recommended.

It takes a deft hand to turn a story of violent obsession into something equally disturbing, beautiful, and truly heartbreaking. Jill Gevargizian is a writer/director to keep an eye on and Najarra Townsend gives a performance that is chilling and brave, yet absolutely tragic and darkly touching. Also, as a proud Kansas Citian, it was awesome to see my city lovingly featured!!

The end really save it from a negative score, but can't be positive either.

Interesting concept, a couple of good scenes, but most of the film is really predictable and boring. Some editing, less slow-mos, and there is no reason for this one to be over 80 minutes.

Generic lead psycho without rhyme or reason murders pretty much anybody she meets. No motive, no specific reason for selection, just random unexplained psychotic breakdowns. Could've been a winner but the writing is terrible and it's jam packed of long repetitive scenes that do nothing to move the story or reveal anything deeper about the main character. Maniac, Sweeney Todd and even Lucky McKee's May do everything done here way better. Ultimately a unoriginal, paint by numbers story with a excruciatingly long and predictable finish. More like a photo shoot for bloody bride monthly than a worthwhile narrative.

Najarra Townsend plays a hairstylist who alternates between sweet and psychotic in a film that's reminiscent of Franck Khalfoun's Maniac and Nicolas Winding Refn's The Neon Demon. Jill Gevargizian's audio-visual choices in the film really stand out - be it neon-esque colorscape or the prominently bassy soundtrack. Townsend, in the titular role, does most of the heavy lifting with a chillingly effective performance. The film gets a bit drab and overlong in its middle portions (especially that nightclub scene) but picks up again towards the end, even if the climax is something that you can foresee from a mile away. It may be an easy film to write off given the predictability aspect alone, however, the aesthetics deserve a double thumbs-up. The script deliberately doesn't focus on how well the hairstylist covers up her grisly murders; it delves more into her inner conflicts instead. All said and done, The Stylist is a film that offers different levels of satisfaction for different viewers.