Directed By Mimi Cave

Starring – Daisy Edgar-Jones, Sebastian Stan, Jojo T. Gibbs

The Plot – The horrors of modern dating seen through one young woman’s (Edgar-Jones) defiant battle to survive her new boyfriend’s (Stan) unusual appetites.

Rated R for strong and disturbing violent content, some bloody images, adult language throughout, some sexual content and brief graphic nudity

fresh trailer – YouTube

POSITIVES

“Fresh” will undoubtedly do for contemporary dating what “Psycho” did for keeping people cautious of their bathroom showers. For better or worse, this is because of the introspective commentary on the horrors of female dating seen through the eyes of both its trivial protagonist, but more specifically screenwriter Lauryn Kahn’s vivid depiction, who supplants unapologetic insight to the experiences that many women have in common. Everything from the unnerving, snappy, and even intentionally corny dialogue feels richly authentic from wisdom-gaining experiences, but the technique established from Cave, who wields her directorial debut, isn’t wasted in one single frame of the film, filling the aura and palpable atmosphere with a volume of bi-polar range that periodically tests and distorts where you think this film may or may not be headed at any given moment. Cave’s alluring on-screen magnetism lends itself entirely to metaphorical instances involving various shadow play, an unexpected 80’s power ballad soundtrack, and an underlining caustic wit in personality that helps to deviate from some of the shocking imagery that may alienate any audiences not thirsty for carnage candy. The violence of the movie itself is never watered-down, nor entirely overwhelming, instead finding a healthy balance that it chooses to save effectively for the climactic third act and coupling itself with a distortion in editing scheme that obscures the line from reality, thus making the brutality all the more engaging for the shock factor of its delivery, whose unpredictability never gives you a chance to prepare for such. While on the subject of technical merits, the spell-binding cinematography here from the great Pawel Pogorzelski (Hereditary, Midsommar) cerebrally absolves as much of the internal feelings of its protagonist that make these scenes and situations all the more relatable, especially in the means by which they’re conjured. During scenes of compassion, the lighting and framing are soft and glowing, emitting a sense of comfort that immediately puts us at ease and playing towards a romantic comedy, while scenes of tension are abruptly steered, dimly lit, and reflective in traits by all things horror cinema in the allure of its mystique. While the technical merits certainly inspire this film to heights it would’ve otherwise never reached, the ensemble here are all a devilishly delightful treat, particularly Edgar-Jones and Stan who radiate compassion in the eyes of the audience with one of the most unbreakable bonds of chemistry that I have seen thus far in 2022. For Daisy, she brings a lot of internal conflict and external vulnerability to the dynamic of her character, fleshing out Noa with innocence when she opens up, but resiliency when her walls of protection feel necessary. Stan is definitely the show-stealer, however, as Steve, who feels like the warning label that every parent warned their daughter about. Steve is charming, wealthy, and especially handsome. He’s endearing without feeling prying or desperate in his pursuit, and Stan pulls all of the right strings to make Noa and the audience fall in love with him, made all the more charismatic by several kitchen sing-a-longs to 80’s ballads that will have you never seeing the tracks, nor Stan, in the same light ever again.

NEGATIVES

While Noa and Steve command the screen with two fleshed-out characters whose motivations are properly defined at every turn, the extent of that notion to supporting characters is anything but consistent in this approach. None of this falls on the shoulders of the ensemble themselves, as I felt the cast did everything they were asked to do on paper. It’s just unfortunate that the direction of their renderings serves as nothing more than temporary plot devices to Noa’s surmising plight. Such an example pertains to both Gibbs’ Mollie and Dayo Okeniyi’s Paul, who are never fleshed out with anything further than one sentence summaries, and only brought up in the context of the story when someone outside of the conflict is needed to properly move it along. Considering how strong the dependency of Noa to Mollie was defined in the opening act, it’s more than a bit disappointing that the latter’s character goes missing for noticeable amounts of time periodically throughout the film, made all the more problematic by the consistency of the storytelling, which doesn’t have enough time away from the central plot to echo meaning into its one word title. Aside from this, a terrifying group introduced midway into the film are tragically only mentioned or hit upon when the film uses them as visual cues to greater meaning of significance in the context of the scene, creating a monumental missed opportunity that doesn’t fully flesh out the reality and circumstances of this underground world-building that could’ve taken its creativity to a whole other level. In addition to this, the final resolution of the conflict, while satisfying in its closure, does rely a bit too much on humor, and not enough on horror. This is most surprising because throughout the 108 minute run time, the film does a superb job of properly balancing these distinct tonal shifts cleverly and competently in ways that echo the shifts in circumstance between Noa and Steve’s respective characters, but during those pivotal moments, the suspense and palpable tension are laid to rest for a few lines of dialogue that directly undercut the tension of what’s established, reaching for parody instead of pandemonium during a climax that can’t elude predictability.

OVERALL

“Fresh” manages to maintain its shelf life as a result of charming performances, unabashedly honest social commentary, and spell-binding direction in the debut of Mimi Cave, who near-perfectly weaves a tapestry of horror and humorous elements to flesh out the reality of the dating world under a contemporary lens. Though the material doesn’t quite conjure something as substantially sharp or creatively profound as “Promising Young Woman” or “Pieces of a Woman”, it does elicit a fresh taste in the creativity of a metaphorical macabre of nightmare fuel for victimized women, one bite at a time.

My Grade: 7/10 or B