Resurrection (2022)

Directed by Andrew Semans. Starring Rebecca Hall, Tim Roth, Grace Kaufman, Angela Wong Carbone, Michael Esper. [R]

Career woman and single mom Hall finds her sense of control and sanity slipping away after encountering a man (Roth) from her past who had psychologically tortured her during a toxic relationship and exerted his own twisted sense of authority. She fears for the safety of her daughter (Kaufman), but in trying to keep her safe, Hall assumes a tyrannical stance and ends up pushing the girl away, along with a lover, a sympathetic coworker, etc. A searing journey, difficult at times to watch because of Hall’s all-too-credible disintegration (I hope she didn’t “go Method” for those heart-seizing panic attacks), but she’s such a compelling subject of eggshell fragility painted like obsidian, it’s even harder to look away. The movie surrounding her is less consistent, as director Semans can’t prevent tension from dissipating at multiple junctures, and his script is too enamored with its #MeToo-meets-body-horror concept to either fully address the subject in a meaningful way or give in to loony suspense and cathartic violence. Indeed, the plunge into the graphic and surreal during the climax won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but the metaphor does work in the icy context of its central theme; besides, by that point, madness was all but inevitable. Hall co-executive produced.

68/100