THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE

Daniel Alfredson, 2009

Starring: Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Lena Endre, Georgi Staykov

Based on the second novel in Stieg Larsson's Millennium series, the film necessarily cuts out lengthy sections of the book, namely the early chapters featuring Lisbeth Salander's time abroad. When Salander returns to Sweden, she is suspected of murdering a pair of journalists who were investigating a sex-trade ring, as well as her abusive guardian, Nils Bjurman. In the previous film he raped and tortured Salander and she blackmailed him for her freedom. Journalist and one-time partner of Salander, Mikael Blomkvist is convinced of her innocence and is determined to get to the bottom of the murders and exonerate Salander. All signs point to a mysterious figure named Zala.

There are certain interesting elements about Flickan som lekte med elden aka The Girl who Played with Fire, but it ultimately falls short. The subtext about the sex trade and human trafficking could add depth to the film, but is little more than a passing set piece, establishing motive for Salander's rage. These books/films are essentially a lengthy hate letter to sexual abuse, objectification, and, as Larssen put it with the real title of the first book, men who hate women. They make a decent attempt, but ultimately fail because the villains are not regular men, they are farcical, Bond-like extremes: serial killers, Nazis, corrupt billionaires, and Russian gangsters.

Somewhat surprisingly, The Girl who Plays with Fire places less of an emphasis on Salander, who barely appears in the first half of the film. She is no longer the invincible, black-clad anti-heroine of the first film. Where in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Salander does the seemingly impossible in terms of computer research, in this film she has to wander around in the dark, safely locked up in her apartment or scuttling down the street in disguise. In Dragon Tattoo she cracks the Vanger case and saves Blomkvist, but here he has to do all the investigating and ultimately saves her -- ultimately a refreshing change.

This also feels more like a revenge film than the previous effort, which was clearly a murder mystery/thriller. SPOILERS: Salander is shot three times and buried alive by Zala, who turns out to be Zalachenko, her long lost father. As a teenager she set Zalachenko on fire to get revenge for his constant abuse of her mother. Both women were hospitalized and institutionalized as a result. The film brings up similarities between Salander and Zalachenko and their familial connection gives an added depth to her rage. She finally appears vulnerable and, by the end of the film, does become more sympathetic. There is also a growing closeness between Salander and Blomkvist, despite the fact that they share almost no screen time. Blomkvist, surprisingly, is more likable and provides a grounding force in this film. Though he was boring, plodding, and reluctant in Dragon Tattoo, here his faith in Salander and passionate drive to prove her innocence gives him more of an emotional spark than expected.

The worst part of the film are the two villains, Zala and his son/henchman Niedermann. They feel like Bond villains, which is grossly out of place in the Millenium world. Niedermann is a hulking blonde German who has a genetic disorder that makes him incapable of feeling pain. Zala is a Russian criminal mastermind who is badly scarred from when the teenage Salander set him on fire, but still manages to run an international crime ring, get involved in sex trafficking, drugs, blackmail, murder, extortion, etc. The mystery surrounding Zala also pales in comparison to the Vanger case in Dragon Tattoo.

The successful elements make me wish it was a better film and I'm reluctant to finish the trilogy, which is less a trilogy and more a separate first feature and a lengthy two-part second film. I wish these films weren't so serious and put more emphasis on the pulp elements, because, let's face, this is generously treading the line of grindhouse cinema.

If you want to check out The Girl who Played with Fire, it is streaming on Netflix and there's a DVD from Music Box Entertainment. I can't recommend the film, but if you're invested in the series it is worth watching.

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO (2009)

Niels Arden Oplev, 2009

Starring: Noomi Rapace, Michael Nyqvist, Sven-Bertil Taube, Peter Haber, Lena Endre

Back in about 2007, I decided to read Stieg Larsson's Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, the first release of what would become the very famous Millenium Trilogy. I'm a sucker for murder mysteries and cheapie noir novels, so it was really only a matter of time before I could no longer resist. I saw the Swedish film not long after it came out and was mindlessly entertained, but largely unimpressed, which was exactly my reaction to the novel. In the past week I decided to re-visit the Swedish film to decide whether or not I wanted to bother seeing the American remake. Generally I frown upon or outright blacklist American remakes of foreign language films for the reason that they are, by definition, completely idiotic and basically represent everything I hate about American pop culture. No one needs me to launch into that rant right now, though. After revisiting the original film I decided I had enough to say about it that I had to write a review.

The plot of the book is sprawling with enough subplots to make a film adaptation seem absurd, but screenwriters Nikolaj Arcel and Rasmus Heisterberg make a valid attempt. Disgraced journalist Mikael Blomkvist is about to face a prison term for committing libel against a Swedish businessman, though he is certain there really is something rotten in the state of Sweden. Millenium, the leftwing magazine he started with co-owner and part-time lover Erika Berger, is suffering because of his trial, so he resigns and reluctantly takes on a new position. Henrik Vanger, ex-tycoon of another multi-million dollar family business has hired him to look into the 40-year old case of his missing niece, Harriet, whom Henrik believes was murdered. Henrik suspects many of his secretive family members, all of whom have suspicious past dealings including links to the Nazi party.

Mikael discovers some interesting new leads and receives some unexpected help. When Henrik decided to hire Mikael, he had him investigated by a surveillance firm and their best hacker, Lisbeth Salander. She's a skinny, tattooed, and pierced 24-year old goth chick with a bad family history and possible sociopathy, schizophrenia, or Asperger's. She also has a photographic memory, a genius-level IQ, and is a bisexual chain-smoker. Salander is a ward of the state, whose aged and ill, but kind former guardian is replaced by a vile, manipulative, and sexually predatory lawyer, Nils Bjurman. At first Bjurman asks Salander invasive questions about her personal life and sexual habits, then takes control of her finances. Soon he coerces her into oral sex in exchange for access to her own money, then later viciously rapes her. The ever-thoughtful Salander catches the rape on video and returns to get vengeance. She ties up and tortures Bjurman, anally rapes him with his own dildo, sloppily tattoos his crimes across his chest, and blackmails him.

She continues to investigate Mikael, who fascinates her for no apparent reason. She reluctantly shares information with him and he convinces her to help whim work on the case in the rural, frostbitten region of Hedestad. SPOILERS ABOUND. It turns out that Harriet's disappearance was not an isolated incident. Mikael and Salander discover that Harriet knew about a series of vicious serial murders that targeted young Jewish women throughout the '50s and '60s. The trail of clues leads them directly to Harriet's father, who died in a boating accident the year before Harriet disappeared. Meanwhile, Salander begins an inexplicable sexual relationship with the older, more passive Mikael, though she resents any emotional intimacy. They finally discover that Harriet's father and brother Martin were a team of serial killers and Martin was only too happy to carry on his father's work alone. Martin almost kills Mikael, but he is saved in the nick of time by Salander, who pursues Martin until he dies in a fiery car accident she could have prevented. The police uncover information about dozens of women Martin raped, tortured, and murdered over the years.

Salander finds Harriet living under an assumed name in Australia. It seems she fled the day of her disappearance, convinced that Martin was going to torture and kill her for knowing about the murders -- a reasonable though, as she was repeatedly tortured and raped by both her father and brother. Harriet is joyously reunited with Henrik and finally gets a chance to tell her story. There are two further conclusions. Mikael serves part of his jail time, but is released when Salander discovers solid evidence that Mikael's dirty businessman is far worse than he seemed. Mikael is able to resume his career at Millenium and is back in the public good graces.

A lot of critics seem to enjoy the book and film because of Lisbeth's character, claiming she is more fascinating than the actual plot of the novel and is the first original anti-hero to come along in the thriller/mystery genre in years. For anyone part of a goth/punk/metal subgenre, Salander is basically a culmination of stereotypes from fringe cultures. She has a few piercings, a few tattoos, and dresses all in black. She's fucked up, angry, very smart, and has a deeply troubled past. I think she probably could have been an interesting character, but comes across as a modern day, edgier Bond girl with her high-tech gadgets, seamless disguises, and sociopathic brilliance.

My main complaint about the film is that it is essentially an exploitation film masquerading as a high class thriller. When I watched it recently I thought about the film's potential message and its original title, Man som hatar kvinnor or Men Who Hate Women. I also thought about why this title wasn't good enough for an English-language audience, who needed the much catchier Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Almost every female character in the film is a victim of sexual violence or, at best, subjected to male indifference. Even the "normal" characters like Erika Berger have a laundry list of divorce, affairs, and disappointing relationships. Salander is allegedly an avenging angel, raping rapers and catching serial killers and dirty businessmen alike. Her actions, which are all essentially reactions, should have the same sort of cathartic fulfillment I feel from watching Coffy, Thriller: A Cruel Picture, or Lady Snowblood, but because the film pretends to have some sort of serious political subtext and message about sexual violence, this falls flat on its face. It tries to be sobering and thrilling at the same time, but mostly feels like a lengthy, formulaic exercise with two-dimensional characters who are not particularly likable.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo will likely be entertaining for anyone who enjoys mindless thrillers, but I can't recommend it any further than that. There's a region 1 blu-ray from Music Box if you're so inclined. I'm not sure what Fincher, Mara or Craig will bring to the remake, but I'm guessing it's just a flashier, more visually appealing version of the original film with tighter editing and a Trent Reznor soundtrack.

THE DEVIL INSIDE

William Brent Bell, 2012
Starring: Fernanda Andrade, Simon Quarterman, Evan Helmuth

Because 2010’s The Last Exorcism wasn’t enough of a piece of shit Exorcist rip-off with a lousy plot and an absurd, abrupt ending about a documentary filmmaker with no concept of how to use a Steadicam, Hollywood decided to start 2012 off right by gifting us with another one of these festering turds.

Isabella, a cute-yet-troubled twenty-something, goes to Rome to investigate whether her mother has a severe psychiatric disorder or whether she is possessed. While Isabella was a child, her mother had a mental breakdown and committed multiple murders, which allegedly occurred during an exorcism. Straining the limits of plausibility, Isabella brings a documentary filmmaker along to capture her tragic story. They are allowed in the psychiatric hospital to interview her heavily sedated and annoyingly crazy mother and in the Vatican’s Exorcism School, where they take a class and hook up with two priests. The priests have secretly gone rogue and seek out cases the church has cast aside, in order to perform helpful exorcisms and save lives. They convince Isabella she has to see an exorcism to really know if her mother is demonically possessed, then, to no one’s great surprise, when they pay a visit to Isabella’s mother the shit hits the fan. Everyone gets possessed, there is a “surprise” ending, blah blah blah.

I knew what I was getting into and I strongly considered not going to see the film at all and instead making a list of religious horror films worth your valuable time (The Confessional, I’m looking at you). But I actually had a great time seeing the film on opening night and I think some thanks are in order.

To the guy in front of me who shouted “THAT’S MY JAM!” during a thoroughly non-creepy rendition of “The Itsy Bitsy Spider,” thank you. Coincidentally, he was the same one who shouted at the opening credits, “The devil’s inside? Yo, that’s rape! The devil’s gonna rape you!”

To the girls behind me who got into a “You shut up,” “No, you shut up,” “I’ll do what I want,” “Bitch, you ugly” fight, thank you.

To the people who shrieked out loud at a little vaginal blood, thank you.

To all the people talking on their cell phones, sending text messages, and the kind folks in the back who brought the crying toddler, thank you.

And most of all, to almost all the theater patrons who stood, screamed, booed, and had jaws dropped in disbelief at the ending, thanks. I could not have gotten through this film without you. Especially the girl a row in front of me who said to her date as the credits rolled, “No, I’m not leaving, there is no way that can be the end. They’re trying to trick us.”

If you’re planning to go see The Devil Inside, get blindingly drunk and go to the most crowded theater possible with the rudest patrons you can imagine. I promise you’ll have a good time (my only mistake was being sober).

P.S. If you really want to know the end, I will happily tell you. Isabella's mother is not possessed by a demon. She's possessed by multiple demons. They jump from her to one of the priests during the ridiculous exorcism performed inside the psych ward, to Isabella, to the douchebag filmmaker. The surviving priest has kidnapped Isabella from the hospital and is attempting to perform an exorcism in the back of a moving vehicle. So the demon(s) does the logical thing and jumps to the driver, violently crashing the car and destroying the camera. And because this is a "found footage" film, that means that the show's over, kids. Too bad it wasn't sooner.

A WINK AND A SMILE: THE ART OF BURLESQUE

Deirdre Allen Timmons, 2008

An examination of the Seattle burlesque scene and an exploration of why a normal woman would go into the field, A Wink and a Smile is an interesting, if unfocused look at one of the most popular historical performance arts. Unfortunately, it is also a movie made by a person with a vagina about people with vaginas for people with vaginas to watch when they are feeling sad, unattractive, or have some raging PMS. Not that there isn't a market for this type of film, it just isn't really my cup of tea.

Ten women of varying ages and backgrounds join Miss Indigo Blue's Academy of Burlesque for several weeks of classes on how to shake it till you make it, followed by a graduation recital. We see a little bit of their time in class, but the documentary is mostly divided between three sections: interviews with Indigo Blue about the history of burlesque, interviews with the women about why they chose to take the class and how it makes them feel, and footage from various burlesque performances. From a technical standpoint, the film is sort of milquetoast in the sense that there are lots and lots of shots of talking heads, where voice over and more clips of burlesque performances would have greatly improved the viewing experience.

Though there are numerous issues, my biggest criticism is that the film has an overtly feminist slant and spends entirely too much time discussing how burlesque performance boosts a woman's self-esteem. While I love and thoroughly support most forms of erotic performance art, burlesque is still all about people getting (mostly) naked to entertain a crowd and then make money. It's not a Lilith Fair hippy circle with hand holding, crying, and talking about feelings. I found most of the women's explanations about their feelings tedious, but the interesting burlesque performances between interviews kept my attention.

There is a fair mix of classic burlesque, raunchier acts, female male impersonators, male burlesque performers, and male-female impersonators. My personal favorite was Lily Verlaine, who, in my opinion, makes the film well worth watching. She is an established performer in Seattle and across the country. Her act in A Wink and a Smile is a Picasso inspired set where she begins the set in white make up and paints herself, quite erotically. Definitely recommended.

The fairest thing I can say about this documentary is that it presents burlesque in its most non-threatening, non-sexual light, avoiding the seedier and more exploitative, financially-driven origins of the art form. And what fun is that? A Wink and a Smile is currently streaming on Netflix, though there is also a basic DVD available from First Run. You can also pop over to the film's official page to find out more.

TIE ME UP! TIE ME DOWN!

Pedro Almodóvar, 1990

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Victoria Abril, Loles León, Francisco Rabal

The most quickly descriptive thing I can say about Atame! is that it is delightfully offensive. A young, energetic Banderas plays Ricky, a troubled young man recently released from a psychiatric hospital. He stalks and kidnaps Marina, an ex-junkie porn star turned actress who he has decided to love, cherish, and marry. His plan is that by kidnapping Marina, she will have time to get to know the real him and also fall in love. Marina is naturally horrified and tries to escape, but Ricky is determined that she will come to love him in time.

At its essence, Atame! (meaning "tie me up") is a romantic comedy and, as much as it chagrins me to admit it, one that I was tricked into thoroughly enjoying. It's partly so entertaining because it openly mocks the narrative structure of most romantic films and the often flagrant misogyny found in that genre. The two main characters are attractive, but are deeply emotionally damaged and not overly intelligent. Marina has spent most of her life as a promiscuous heroin addict who made a career in porn and is finally turning to legitimate film, though of course it is a horror production. Ricky grew up in a psychiatric hospital where he survived by pimping himself out to the older female staff members. These two emerge from their supposedly tormented pasts to pursue a normalized heterosexual model of adult life, though Almodóvar pokes a great deal of fun at the ridiculous nature of heterosexual courtship and love.

Though this is one of his less colorful, more subdued works, it still comes highly recommended. Atame! is Almodóvar's eighth film and was critically and financially successful if controversial. The original NC-17 rating doesn't make a whole lot of sense, though there are some sexy moments and a scene of Loles León sitting down on a toilet seat and peeing. There is nary a hardcore scene to be found.

The references to Stockholm syndrome and John Fowler's novel The Collector are slightly uncomfortable. Not only does Marina convince herself that she loves Ricky, but she also convinces her more suspicious sister, who knows about the kidnapping. In a certain sense the basic plot also reminds me of Shaw's Pygmalion and, as I mentioned, the romantic comedies of the '50s and early '60s. Though Ricky is not trying to mold Marina into a particular role, he is trying to show her the wisdom of adopting a conventional heterosexual romantic role of her own choosing... sort of.

Atame! is usually described as a dark comedy, which I don't think is entirely accurate. There are some dark moments where we don't know how far Ricky is going to take things, but the threat of violence dissolves into sexual tension and humor. Like romantic comedies from the '50s and '60s that I can't help but feel that Almodóvar is mocking, the romantic/erotic elements are blended with moments of oddball comedy. These bits of humor occur particularly on the film set Marina wrapped up before her kidnapping, which is a horror film about a well-muscled, masked half-man, half-undead monster who is in love with Marina's character and, after murdering several other characters, wants to take her with him to the underworld. There are numerous references to horror films throughout, including a nice scene where Marina watches Night of the Living Dead while placidly tied up, waiting for Ricky's return.

There's a lovely soundtrack by Ennio Morricone which is more reminiscent of a horror film than a romantic comedy. Apparently Almodóvar only used about half the score and also mixed in some ironic Spanish pop music. There's a nice DVD from Anchor Bay that has a good print and optional subtitles, though sadly no extras. Definitely track it down, particularly if you are a fan of unconventional romantic comedies or of Almodóvar's work.

CRAWLSPACE

David Schmoeller, 1986

Starring: Klaus Kinski, Talia Balsam, Barbara Whinnery, Carole Francis

David Schmoeller’s neglected gem Crawlspace has been rescued from obscurity by Shout Factory subset Scream Factory alongside a release of another ‘80s cult classic, The Beast Within (1982). Released on a newly restored Blu-ray disc this month, Crawlspace is one of the late, great Klaus Kinski’s final cult films and surely one of his weirdest, which, if you’re familiar with the actor’s work, is really saying something. 

Lori (Talia Balsam) is the newest tenant at Karl Gunther’s (Klaus Kinski) neat, orderly apartment building. While Karl and the other tenants - all women - seem friendly, Karl is the son of a Nazi doctor and gleefully continues his father’s sadistic profession. He performs cruel experiments in the attic and throughout the apartment building, where he spies on and murders his tenants. He also sets up a series of devious violent booby traps in the building. 

One by one, Karl begins to dispose of the women in the apartment building and slowly works his way toward Lori. A Nazi hunter (Kenneth Robert Shippy) tracks him down, but is quickly dispatched by a particularly gruesome booby trap. While attempting to flee and hide throughout the building, Lori makes some horrifying discoveries. Will she survive the CRAWLSPACE?

A film that unabashedly makes as little sense as possible, Crawlspace is chock full of sleaze, violence, mean-spiritedness, and a commandingly creepy Klaus Kinski. He seems to have totally embraced his role as an ex-Nazi doctor pervert turned murderer, though Karl is really only the son of a Nazi, wished he was born in more horrible times. Allegedly writer and director David Schmoeller (Puppet Master) had a very difficult time with Kinski on set and the actor frequent went as far as to tell Schmoeller that only Kinski was capable of directing himself. 

Kinski may have been a pain in the ass, but his performance here is truly incredible, certainly at the top of any B-movie insanity list. He plays Russian Roulette with himself, weeps openly, dons a Nazi uniform and smears lipstick across his face, keeps a tongueless woman in a cage, and so much more that I don’t want to spoil. With any actor other than Kinski, this would have been a slightly weird and probably very boring slasher film, as the general plot construct is set up around a madman killing middle aged women in a nonsensically booby-trapped apartment building.

The women of the film don’t fare so well, particularly because they’re mostly played by a cast of inexperienced, middle aged women, none of whom are particularly attractive. The exception is Tane McClure (Heavy Petting Detective) who walks around scantily clad and bafflingly engages in a rape fantasy with her boyfriend early in the film. Most of the other actresses are better known for their television rather than film careers, such as star Talia Balsam (Mad Men) and Barbara Whinnery (St. Elsewhere). 

Directed David Schmoeller also made one of my favorite weird, neglected films from the ‘70s, Tourist Trap (1979), and he does a similar job here despite his complaints that Kinski nearly ruined the production. Surprisingly, the interesting cinematography is from Sergio Salvati, known for his work with Lucio Fulci on The Beyond (1981) and Zombie (1979). Brian De Palma’s regular collaborator Pino Donaggio created the fitting, if very ‘80s score. 

Crawlspace is undeniably entertaining, but may be too exploitative for casual horror fans. It’s willingness to throw logic to the wind and embrace a sort of mind-blowing, sheer balls-to-the-wall insanity is difficult to describe without giving too much away. There is some sex and nudity, but absolutely nothing about this film is erotic. As with Fulci’s New York Ripper (1982), the sex is mean-spirited, confusing, or simply gratuitous. The violence is largely off screen, with much of the nastiness implied, yet hard to ignore. A minor, final note is that there is no true crawlspace in the film, just a terrifying attic and some very large air vents. 

Scream Factory’s new HD transfer, presented in 1080p with the original aspect ration of 1.85:1, looks fantastic and is an improvement over the old MGM DVD. Though the film itself is somewhat dark, the colors and contrast both look great here and there is no obvious print damage. There is a DTS Master Audio 2.0 mono mix that sounds sharp and clear. There is no noticeable damage or distortion. Both dialogue and the score are well mixed, though there are no subtitles included. 

With a notable like Kinski starring in the film, of course there were going to be some interesting extras. First and foremost is the entertaining commentary track from David Schmoeller, who explains how difficult Kinski was on set and the overall stressful nature of the production. Please Kill Mr. Kinski, a short documentary from 1999, further explores this in an interview with Schmoeller. Tales from the Crawlspace with John Vulich is a new featurette where special effects wizard John Vulich (The X-Files, Day of the Dead) discusses his relationship with Kinski and the effects he created for the film. Also included is the original theatrical trailer and TV spots.

Scream Factory’s Crawlspace Blu-ray is definitely an improvement over the out of print MGM double feature (with The Attic) and I hope this release will attract a little more attention for such a neglected film. Chances are few people reading this review will be as over the moon about the film as I am, but all ‘80s horror and/or exploitation fans, as well as Klaus Kinski devotees owe it to themselves to see it at least once. 

THE SKIN I LIVE IN

Pedro Almodovar, 2011

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya, Marisa Paredes, Jan Cornet

There are a lot of things I love about the few Almodovar's films I've seen, but something in particular that he does with character keeps me coming back for more. He has a way of keeping his protagonists untouchable, unknowable, always out of reach. While this might be irritating for more conventional audiences, it is probably my favorite thing about Almodovar as a director. He reminds us not only that characters in film and fiction are never meant to be real people, but also that other people can never be completely known to us and we will only ever see them from certain angles and vantage points.

While I unquestionably loved La piel que habito, it is a troubled, elusive film that is akin to Georges Franju's Eyes Without a Face and David Cronenberg's Dead Ringers. Medical experimentation, sexual horror, and a profound sense of identity confusion and displacement connect it with these earlier films, but it manages to stand on its own as an unsettling tale of mystery, trauma, and revenge.

Based loosely on Thierry Jonquet's novel Mygale, The Skin I Live In follows Robert (Banderas), a surgeon who has been doing some unconventional and possibly immoral experiments on synthetic skin. He also keeps a girl in his home who wears a body suit, is not allowed to leave her room, and is always monitored by camera. It becomes clear that Robert has been doing these experiments because he lost his beloved, if unfaithful wife to a fiery car accident and though she survived, she eventually killed herself when she saw the extensive burn damage to her body. The girl, Vera, bears a strange resemblance to his dead wife. There is also the matter of his daughter, who killed herself after a traumatic assault. But who is Vera? How did she get in the room?

Told in a series of chronological leaps backwards and forwards, The Skin I Live In is essentially a blend of horror and melodrama. It visits Almodovar's trademark themes of trauma, memory, sexuality, and identity, as well as revolving around the two mainstays of body horror: sexual trauma and medical experimentation. Like Dead Ringers, The Skin I Live In is made up of characters struggling with anxiety and loneliness, characters trapped in their own bodies and trying, but miserably failing, to make the best of it. The plot is completely implausible, but if you treat it like a horror/sci-fi film, the more impossible elements melt away in Almodovar's constantly whirling, changing cinematic creation.

There are plenty of reasons I would highly recommend this film, but first and foremost is Almodovar's visual style. Full of bold colors, striking set pieces, and references to many famous paintings, the set is dripping with important symbolic details that it will probably take a few viewings to catch all of. There is also the importance of masks, costumes, and uniforms. Most of the clothes were designed by Jean-Paul Gaultier and they all play critical importance to the various characters' shifting identities, the way that costume shapes personality.

Horror fans will not only enjoy the suggestive, but disgusting body horror elements, but also the clear Gothic inspiration. There is an obvious but elegant nod to Victor Frankenstein with Banderas's Robert and it is great to see him return to form. His chilling, but somewhat sympathetic character is reminiscent of some of Hitchcock's handsome, charming if utterly cold and determined villains.

There is a twist that is revealed towards the end of the film, but you're just going to have to see it to find out what it is. The Skin I Live In is out on a 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack from Sony.