Review of We Are What We Are (2013) by Thomas W — 07 May 2014

After tragedy strikes the highly reclusive and austere Parker family, the two teenage daughters Iris and Rose find themselves stepping up to help their father deal with their family loss while also taking on burdensome familial responsibilities that will try their mental fortitude, test their spirits as well as challenge their beliefs.

Their staunchly traditional father (Bill Sage - Mysterious Skin) clings to the past and refuses to allow his three children to forget who they are (as in the title of the film) or the plight of those who came before them.

Mirroring the daughters' gloomy, dreary and increasingly desperate circumstances, a merciless torrent of rain threatens to flood the local community and unearth some ungodly secrets. While there are same gaping plot holes in the story, the film is stylishly yet simply made and it successfully retains its sullen and grim mood and look throughout -- it is a thinking person's horror film as well as a biting commentary on patriarchy.

One of the reasons the film works on the level that it does is the proficient talent of the actresses playing Iris (Ambyr Childers - The Master) and Rose (Julia Garner - The Perks of Being a Wallflower) as they come across as two young women with an incomprehensible naivety that melds together with an exasperated grit that is compellingly believable.

Kelly McGillis (Top Gun) has a small role as a thoughtful neighbor ... and, wow, she's changed! Although her physical appearance is completely unimportant to the movie, the movie is rather slow-paced and won't be an easy one for some to digest so making a prospective audience wonder whether or not Top Gun's Charlie still has "that loving feeling" might just be that tempting amuse-bouche some might need to check this one out.