Review of Raw (2017) by Jenna I — 12 Mar 2017

I fully admit this movie is Not For Me. Call me crazy but I'm not too into cannibalism, sorry to disappoint folks. That said, I'm sure anybody with less innocent eyeballs and a stronger stomach will enjoy this. It's a horror movie with both meaning, gratuitous violence and a sprinkling of the supernatural so it has something for everybody.

My more spoilery review is:

It seemed pretty obvious to me that, more than peer pressure, this was all a metaphor for drug use and/or addiction. It's about not even opening the door a tiny crack into what easily could be a slippery slope towards ruining your life. Every situation Justine finds herself in is a situation in which drugs would also be found-from frat parties to clubs to her ex-vegetarian sister with no boundaries or control. She gets introduced to 'meat' and immediately has a bad reaction, her body full on rejects it. But when her sister claims its not a big deal, she tries it again-first secretly and eventually full on crazytown doing whatever she needs to in order to 'score'. He life quickly falls apart as she can no longer control her urges and her taboo predilections start to seep out in public.

Anyhow, I'm finding it more fun to explain this movie than it was to watch. Its acted well, it's shot well, and the movie does a great job of building a unique universe that feels like it should belong in a Yorgos Lanthimos film. I even liked the quick nod to Alex DeLarge as Justine sits staring dead-eyed into a party with classical-esque dance music playing. BUT There were too many horrible scenes of vomiting, viscous liquids, eye-licking, skin rashes, ear-pound parties, rubbing and y'know cannibalism... not my bag. Seen it once, never again, no thanks.