Skincare

As a thriller, it needed to be...more thrilling. There really wasn't enough going on to elevate it above being a decent Lifetime movie, an episode of Nip/Tuck, or a concise hour-long rerun of Dateline with Keith Morrison narrating in his patented Canadian way. Or maybe, the other guy...Dennis whats-his-face. You know, the one with the moles and skin tags. Oh hey, he would have been a great choice for the reenactment of this movie.

But that is the problem with Skincare: it is just too safe and by-the-book. Even the lady that inspired the script said that the actual events were even crazier. And the film itself needed more style. Like literally 2020's horror offering The Stylist comes immediately to mind. There needed to be a central underlying metaphor. Something to do with the "ugliness" of the aesthetician profession. Something more than what was presented.

I don't know. It was fine. Just more ridiculousness would have been appreciated.

Standard thriller that tries to blend true crime and high fashion but stumbles in execution. The film's under-saturated visuals give it a drab look that feels out of place in the gaudy LA setting, while the bad ADR and mediocre acting make it hard to fully engage. The main character's self sabotaging decision becomes frustrating right off the bar, and the plot lacks much progression, leaving her largely unchanged by the end. Elizabeth Banks turns up the paranoia and maintains a hysterical persona for most of the film-though the performance quickly gets old. The music is a high point, with its stress-inducing synths that build tension, but even that can't save the predictable and rushed ending. It's an okay film, but there's no need to rush out to see it. If you're into true crime dramas, skincare, or LA fashion, it might be worth a watch when it hits streaming.

So the trailer peaked my curiosity and I downloaded to watch and it really started off ok. Elizabeth Banks has a beauty salon providing exquisite skincare service for her customers, ready to launch her own product line, when the competition shows up next door and coincidentally a loaded group email goes out to everyone she knows smearing her character, hurting the reputation of her business and the fallout of who's behind it begins. Everything leading up to her launch now spirals completely downward and her naive mindset has her looking in the wrong direction of who's trying to destroy her reputation. For a dark comedy it failed to deliver the way Drop Dead Gorgeous did with the late Kristie Alley o so well. Skincare was watchable but extremely forgettable popcorn.

Was this in theaters? It looks and feel like a made-for-streaming movie. Banks looks great in the movie, and... that's about it.

The plot is bland, very predictable, Nothing much to do with skincare, this could have been about fashion, cakes, anything really.

They could have done something smart like having a toxic skincare product or something like that but no.

The villains are a joke and the main character (Banks) is not very smart, or at least not acting like one. The only good trick she pulled is with that TV anchor.

Presumably, based on a true story, but if its linear and boring who cares if its true? Make it interesting at least.

There is nothing at the end of what happened to the real people, so for all intent and purpose this could just as well be made up.

Anyway, if you're into Elizabeth Banks and skin products you might endure this move for 1.5 hrs, but the rest should stay away, seriously not worth your $$ even for streaming.

Exact score: 51 / 100.

We went into this movie knowing absolutely nothing, and I recommend that! It's got funny parts, heartfelt parts, and scary parts. There's some violence but not a ton. It's mostly a suspense type of flick where you're wondering what the heck is about to happen- and you think you know who is doing what but you may be wrong. It's just a nice what-the-heck-is-going-on type of dramatic thriller. Elizabeth Banks is amazing in it, and seeing this makes me see her in a new light. She is so good, and I'm embarrassed to say I hadn't noticed her chops before this. It also features Lewis Pullman, the son of my fave Bill Pullman, and Nathan Fillion, against whom the funnier lines of the movie are played.