Raw (2017)

When Julia Ducournau's Raw was first released, it gathered a lot of hype thanks to its reputation in regards visceral imagery and pretty confronting cannibalism story. I was worried that I would watch it and be let down, because reviews seemed generally positive and I'm always here for horror tinged plots driven by female directors and female protagonists. On finally watching Raw, I can tell you that it is barely a horror movie and barely a cannibalism movie at all: it is a thinly veiled allegory for burgeoning sexuality alongside themes of sisterhood and coming of age, all wrapped in the skin of cannibal tropes past. I loved it. 

The story of Raw is not anything revolutionary. Someone (in this case, a first year vegetarian veterinary student named Justine played by Garance Marillier) gets forced to eat meat, and develops a taste for human flesh. There is nothing subtle in the way it is told - Justine's cravings for meat evoke a sexual awakening and echo her transformation into an adult. She turns to her sister as her confidant and her roommate as her social guide to help tackle the overlapping struggles of initiation to college and a growing need to eat people. 

Ducournau creates an atmosphere where sterility meets beautifully framed establishing shots and contrasts it with some of the messiest depictions of youth I can remember. It brings real warmth and humanity to characters who should absolutely be alienating for their actions, ie cannibalism, because they feel so authentic and unfinished in the way that young adults are. The characterisation was wonderful - there's a scene of levity where the sisters are getting drunk on the roof together, and it's silly and gross but I immediately felt the relationship between them in all of its complexity. The party scenes don't feel like fake staged movie parties: there's a dizziness that translates to the audience that so rarely gets through. Justine makes terrible decisions and choices that feel confusing and overwhelmingly naive, but her journey is easy to connect to the whole time. 

A lot of comments on the initial wide release of this movie commented on the reliance on shock value, or the crudeness of the imagery. I guess I watch a lot of horror movies, because I found the implications and framing of this movie far more unsettling than any of the actual images provided. The level of college hazing demonstrated was by far the most disturbing thing about it, to me. There is a scene involving vomiting that was a little challenging for me because I am actively ill at the moment and my sympathetic reflexes felt a little too much for Justine, but I also felt the rest of the movie was quite restrained when the gore was not absolutely necessary to the plot. 

I loved so much about this movie but I wish it had sustained its energy right to the end. The final scene - spoiler free - felt a little unsatisfying, as if there was no way to wrap it up bar some spoken exposition. The conversation between too characters goes too long and feels disconnected from the rest of the movie and gave me a bit of tonal whiplash. If instead we had been able to maintain some of that haunting imagery and ambiguity that the rest of the movie relished in, I would have been utterly on board. I also had to go back and rewatch sections because I got so engrossed in the visuals that I forgot my lack of proficiency in French and had stopped reading the subtitles. If you're sensitive to animal use in horror, this is also definitely not the movie for you.

This movie is about agency and lust. It's about women wanting things and struggling with the conflict between the desire to have them or to fit in with the norm. Women's bodies are wrapped up in pleasure and torture and their lives unfold in ways that constantly contradict and offend. Even the response to this film feels gendered - I feel like I've seen this story told in less artful ways about men, and it's never been about shock value or excessiveness. A delayed accusation of torture porn, perhaps, which is in no way a claim you could level here.

Rating: 9/10 - Right up there with Colossal and Get Out as my favourite movies of the year, but definitely quieter in its goals. It might not be as ripe for the rewatch, but it made up for it in beauty and women. It won't be for everyone, but I'd definitely recommend it to horror fans who don't mind the artier flicks.