Review of Fever Dream (2021) by Bertobellamy — 14 Oct 2021

This is a very strange film. Haven't read the novel which is based on, but from what I have discovered here, a lot of people praise the adaptation.

The plot is hard to describe, but I'll do my best: a mother and her daughter spend their vacation in a small town. There, a woman befriends them, but she has a burden on her shoulders: she claims her son is not hers anymore. The drama unfolds, and the plot slowly becomes a dreamy thriller with horror overtones — courtesy of the creepiest kid ever. Although the acting is very good — Dolores Fonzi and María Valverde are convincing as the two leads —, the story didn't get me involved at all. Claudia Llosa and Samantha Schweblin — the novel's writer — try to cover a lot of themes, including spiritism, motherhood, and ecological disaster, and I found very little connection between all of them.

What I found very resonating is the sense of contamination, physical and spiritual. What a mother has to do to maintain their children clean in every way? The plot shows us two ways, each one with its unique consequences.

As its name suggests, 'Fever Dream' feels like a dream. Its layers develop very smoothly, transitioning between narration, the present, and some flashback sequences. Photography is key here to give the film its dreamlike look.

This is definitely not for everyone, and even if I can't say I really enjoyed it, I appreciate the effort to make an unconventional film that mixes genres in some unexpected ways.