Darlin'

Wow, what a disappointment. I mean, the possibilities stemming from the end of the previous movie. What was the Woman's life like? What is the fate of the daughter she just walks away with? How would she be raised? In this movie, the girl is hit by an ambulance, sent off to a religious school for the nefarious purposes of a crooked bishop, meanwhile, the Woman tries to track her down. When she finally does, well, the ending makes no sense.

I think what I hated most about this movie, was that it seemed to be purely about agendas and messages. Even the songs in it are hitting you over the head! Characterization takes a back seat (or you're just left with plain caricatures). I thought The Woman handled its social commentary much more eloquently. This was pretty dumb.

I suppose the "men are despicable" angle is a commonality. Here, every single "bad guy" gets his comeuppance, as in, they are killed, by a woman. The only competent, compassionate, helpful males in this movie are a gay couple (2019, yeah, that's accurate). The "worst" perpetrator, the bishop, is played so OTT, that he is one moustache twirl and a lady tied to the tracks away from being a cartoon character. Of course the foxy nun gets to wear a sweater and jeans, while every frumpy nun wore their habits. I had no idea what to make of that.

Darlin'. She is feral and mute to begin with, and after spending a little time at the school, can fully comprehend English, speak like a normal person, AND grasp religious philosophies thrown her way! Then the nurse from the hospital pays her a visit, and she speaks in broken English. What, did the editor get the scenes mixed up? Oh, they throw in a little E. T. too, for good measure. Like, my hand was on my forehead. And there is a point where this movie becomes a comedy for a while. New girl drinks a bottle of bleach and nothing happens. The End.

The title character, played by Lauryn Canny, did a nice job of playing a feral little girl. Hence the extra star.

Glowing review from a prominent movie review site on the back. Ohhhhhhhh... a horror movie with real-life issues and messages. That's an automatic "thumbs up."

This movie seemed to have potential, I really wanted to get into it. Unfortunately it moves painfully slow, and has far more moments of absurd comedy (or just plain stupidness) than scares. You also have an overload of predictable stereotypes. The religious characters are mostly hypocrites or perverts, of course. Gay characters are heroic, cops are idiots, you know the drill. The lead actress was convincing and I was rooting for her, she just didn't have much to work with. There is a character who would stick out like a sore thumb in any crowd, but somehow she walks around killing people in public and everyone seems to take no notice. U might want to skip this one.

McIntosh also stars in this film which deals with issues revolving around our inner, animalistic impulses, the battle on patriarchy, and the corruption of religious leaders. Lauren Canny (who plays Darlin') is fantastic in her role of savage-turned-tame after being brainwashed into a "civilized" adolescent.

Unsure why some people would attribute a 1 or 2 to this movie because that's evidently simply just people trying to trash it. Even if one were to dislike the movie, it cannot possibly be worth a 1...

Not sure why people gave it a low grade. The movie is as decent a horror movie as many out there. The concept of a wild, untamed, human being found in a civilized setting in the 21st century is weird. I could understand if this happened in the Amazonia. But, let's assume it is possible. We would all look at that being as a savage one, and, likewise, we would be very strange to that being.

How do we adapt to circumstances which are completely new to us? What is the role of God in a modern society? Are we understood if we are complete outsiders somewhere? All of these questions could apply in a broader sense to the world we live in today. Many of us have felt as outsiders sometimes somewhere in our lives, and we learned to adapt, to change. When we go to a new school, or start a life in a new city or country. Sometimes we get accepted, sometimes not.

But, enough of going into philosophy. Just watch the movie. It is completely okay to watch and is not a waste of time.

Although it is a third sequel, it can be watched on its own.

I love everything that this film is addressing: religion, women's relationships, and the female body. But because this film tries to tackle so much, it doesn't completely finish a sentence or thought. It did, however, make me fiercely close my legs more than I ever have in my whole life.