The Skin I Live In VS Elizabeth Harvest Both Have Big Reveals

Obsession and body horror. Two great ingredients for a story. Both The Skin I Live In (2011) and Elizabeth Harvest (2018) is great examples of nightmare scenarios. It’s impossible to talk about these two movies in full without spoiling the big reveal so If you’ve not seen either film, back away quietly. I have not specifically spoiled either film too much though. If you enjoy psychological thrillers with a science-fiction edge, you can’t go wrong with either of these films.

The Skin I Live In Full In Movie Review

The story has been likened to the 1960 horror film, Eyes Without a Face. Both feature a surgeon and both surgeons are heavily into face-swapping to get what they want. Apart from those similarities, The Skin I Live In is original and mostly incomparable to anything else. Released in 2011 and directed by Pedro Almodóvar, The Skin I Live In is a Spanish-language movie with a bonkers storyline.

A nonlinear storyline helps ease into the surprise of surgeon Robert Ledgard giving his subject a complete overhaul. The film moves between flashbacks and the present time to give background details for both Robert and his guinea pig, Vera. What I loved about this was the intertwining character specifics and, that they cause a conflict of interest. Each role is inherently flawed in some way. While sympathy is rarely given to such contemptible people, there are numerous times when this happens.

The Skin I Live In can be separated into a few pieces. Firstly, Ledgard whose story doesn’t suggest he might be a prolific control freak at first. Played by Antonio Banderas, his relationship with his wife Gal is left to the imagination. Until she gets involved in a horrific accident after leaving Ledgard for another man, the brilliant scientist’s reputation isn’t completely tarnished. The knock-on effect that Gal’s death causes; begins with the loss of his daughter, mentally.

Like Eyes Without a Face But Not

Secondly, Vicente. The Skin I Live In is very much a character-driven story. How you feel about Vicente’s fate will depend on what you think happens considering the ambiguous nature of his scene with Norma. It’s not shown whether Vicente committed a crime against Norma or whether he bailed straight after knocking her out. Was it a heinous assault or a reaction to her sudden screams? Was Vicente guilty of common assault or sexual assault?

His daughter Norma thinks her own father attacked her and her father considers her a child. For Ledgard, the punishment he dreams of suits his endeavors across the board. For him, his science will fix everything that has gone wrong in his life.

Lastly, the role of his mother ensures that all the essential roles are connected in a completely dysfunctional way. Although details are scant about Marilia’s past there’s just enough information to know it’s not a straightforward scenario. With regard to this information and the story at hand, the fact that Robert has a brother he doesn’t know is only something the audience knows. It’s something that simply adds fuel to the already burning story.

Overall The Skin I Live In is cinematically brilliant, the editing is constructed to ensure you get the jaw-dropping disbelief moment I’m sure was intended. If ever there was a film to go into blind, The Skin I Live In will give you that ‘No, Way!’ moment you are looking for.

I give The Skin I Live In

4 when getting shaved is the least of your problems out of 5

The Skin I Live In 2011 Trailer

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Films about Narcissists: The Invisible Man / Inheritance / Charlie Says / Movies like Fatal Attraction

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Elizabeth Harvest 2018 Trailer

Elizabeth Harvest Movie Review

It’s hard to believe director-writer Sebastian Gutierrez is responsible for both Elizabeth Harvest and Snakes on a Plane. Although there’s nothing wrong with the latter film, the two are incomparable on any playing field. Elizabeth Harvest is a movie that draws you in the further it goes along. It feels like many other movies with similar storylines but maintains its mystery until the final act.

In a single-location film, the cinematography is beautifully sterile. Everything about the lighting and colors is dark and ominous and then there’s Elizabeth. Played by Abby Lee, her red hair and joyful innocence are immediately a stark contrast to her odd living arrangements.

In the opening scenes, the narrative looks like it’s played all its cards. The young effervescence Elizabeth has just married an older Henry and they arrive at his extravagant mansion. Greeted by the help, they are ushered inside where Elizabeth meets Claire and Oliver for the very first time. Her eyes are wide as she takes in her surroundings before Henry tells her, that everything she sees is all for her. Everything except one room in the house.

Also, Henry makes it very clear the room that she cannot enter is for Henry alone. It’s his personal space and as long as she heeds his instructions they will be happy together and Elizabeth will receive anything she wants. The assumption is that this young lady has married quickly, but her movements and dialogue seem oddly superficial. Almost as if she was not favored with the intelligence stick. The couple goes through all the motions of a newlywed pair before Henry announces he has to take a trip and will be back in a few days.

Movies That Keep You Guessing

For a while, Elizabeth is content to play dress-ups with her luxurious wardrobe, order milkshakes from Claire, and try to get the lay of the land. But soon she discovers there is no phone line to call outside the house, the doors are locked and the mysterious room that she cannot enter is more interesting than anything else she has going on.

Even with the discovery of a massive laboratory and what looks like clones of herself, the shock of seeing Henry hunt down Elizabeth and kill her was not what I anticipated. I was immediately reminded of an episode of Into the Dark, All That We Destroy, and would have been content with a story of a similar nature.

And yet, the film has more in store. At every turn, the generic paint wears thinner. Elizabeth Harvest doesn’t follow the normal routes of what it looks like it sets out to do. The further the story goes on, the more tiny droplets of information we are given thicken the plot.

In addition, I loved the massive turns in the story as each of the skeletal cast has its story put forward. Performances are excellent and the whole saga is completed so that you know what everyone’s motivations are and can easily think up what might happen next. I’d be happy to see a sequel of Elizabeth Harvest. I’m certain a second movie would have just as much to offer.

I give Elizabeth Harvest

4 consequential measures of action out of 5

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