Review of Queen of Earth (2015) by Cynthia D — 29 Dec 2015

There were plenty of other films that tackled, at least partially(in subplots or plot threads), the same ground as "Queen of Earth"(abandoned girl turning to her best friend for solace, comfort and support, well, indeed, this is an old story), but, more often than not, these films/parts ended up as cheesy and even laughable.

Alex Ross Perry's film avoids that by being honest, unrestrained and uncompromising. Here is a film that does very little to make us look at its protagonist from a convenient angle. It doesn't look for ways to defend her, nor does it want to ridicule her, it is far more focused on depicting the inner mechanisms. And this is what makes the film effective, this intimate tone. What Catherine says or does might seem, at some point at least, as incomprehensible or ridiculous, however, it feels natural, believable.

Another thing that I find at least notable is the style. "Queen of Earth" is shot in digital, which makes sense, given the film's tone, but is not devoid of atmosphere, quite on the contrary, Alex Ross Perry gives it a highly disturbing and haunting tone from the very first scene. Yes, I might point out that the style is not authentic, it actually owes a lot to David Lynch(especially to David Lynch's "INLAND EMPIRE"), but even so, "Queen of Earth" is not a mindless copycat and the lynchian notes are placed on the right spots.

On the downside, however, the film could have used some extra 20 to 30 minutes and just a bit of self-control(just a bit). As it is, "Queen of earth" is a bit to loose and suffers from having a rather abrupt and disappointing ending.

Still, overall, it's satisfactory ride for those ho generally enjoy this neurotic approach and don't have a problem with the central theme.

My two cents: 4 out of 5.