Review of American Mary (2013) by Thomas M — 18 Jan 2014

Uh-Oh. There's two people here who get credited as directors, writers and cast. That's usually not a good sign at all. Thank god the Soska sisters only had a small role in this movie, their little vanity project scene is easily one of the low points in this movie.

Mary Mason (Katharine Isabelle) is a medical student with financial problems. She applies for a job as a stripper, but instead gets to perform fringe medical procedures and body modifications while wearing form-fitting leather and latex costumes. After an evening filled with naive behavior, she's the sexual victim of one of her teachers. Of course, she plots revenge. This eventually leads her to unravel.

This movie has received a lot of critcism for being 'too feminist' and 'hypocritical'. Sure, the catalyst for the main character development in Mary is, no surprise here, rape. And to make sure we don't forget it, the Soska Twins let their 'detective' in the story explicitly state "YOU'RE the victim here, Mary!".

Despite these obvious neo-feministic elements, the movie is not all bad. Isabelle does a commendable job of portraying Mary. The flaws and cliches in the character should be blamed on the writers, not the actress. Furthermore, the visuals are pretty good and consistent.

"But what about the sexism against men?" Some readers may ask. Sure, 99% of the men in this story are unrelatable jerks, rapists and mysogynists. But then again, look at how women are portrayed here. Neither Mary nor Beatrice (Tristan Risk) or Ruby Realgirl (Paula Lindberg) are portrayed as good, sane, characters in control of their life or urges.

While this movie is a long ways away from a really great film, it's better than some of the crap Hollywood churns out at a steady pace. It says somewhere that it was filmed in 15 days on a small budget. That only confirms how much money gets wasted by the big boys in Hollywood.

Pros: A good lead role by Katharine Isabelle, great visual style.

Cons: Predictable at best.

Verdict: OK.