Under the skin

With its art house feel, this film delivers something very unconventional and intensely strange. If you expect action and gory horror, you will certainly be disappointed. But maybe you will end up hypnotised by the eerie world Scarlett Johansson traverses. The gritty, bleak environment feels like a mixture of grim reality and shadowy nightmare. At times it feels like a surreal dream you want to wake up from, but one that is so compulsive, you can't resist continuing.

Scarlett Johansson is captivating and her English accent spot on. There are many sights, sounds, and characters that go together to create the overall nightmarish dreamscape experience. The direction, creative flair and overall design, make this film very different from the norm.

I came away feeling very affected by the intense experience this film delivers. I will watch it again at some point, but only when my mind is ready, because it really took me to a dark, disturbing place.

From the beginning shot of this film depicting lights and eclipses, we will already see that this will not be just another run-of-the-mill motion picture. When we see a nude Scarlett Johansson for the first time in that pristine white room, we definitely know we are in for a different sort of ride.

A woman drives around Scotland. She strikes up conversations with various men she picks up along the way. She will seduce them into coming with her and they follow her into her black void of a house. However, as this woman encounters more men, she will also realize and discover new things about herself.

Despite the presence of a big name star Scarlett Johansson, this is not a mainstream film. The techniques are unmistakably art-house, with long stretches of silence, of Johansson just driving around, of random people just going about their daily routines. It is said that to be realistic, the film makers shot Johansson picking up real men off the street (not actors) and interviewed them without a script as they were driving around. The thick Scottish accents may be unintelligible.

Many audiences may just dismiss this as a fruitless waste of 100 minutes, since on paper, the plot seems to be simple enough for a single "X-Files" episode. However, serious cinephiles will be enraptured by the film's bizarre cinematographic beauty, deeper symbolic meaning and recall films by hallowed directors like Stanley Kubrick or David Lynch.

There are carefully orchestrated shots of seduction, very effective (of course with Johansson in various stages of undress) and mysterious (with that pitch black shiny room and that eerie piercing music by Mica Levi). There was a scene with a couple, their baby and their dog on an isolated windswept beach which will disturb you. There was a scene involving a man with a disfigured face which will haunt you.

"Under the Skin" is a unique artistic movie experience which will polarize audiences. Director Jonathan Glazer has created a bleak masterpiece which will visually mesmerize and thematically baffle his viewers. So, are you seduced to take up this challenge? 7/10.

Despite being a box office failure, 'Under the Skin' was a critical success with a lot of critics citing it as "an unforgettable experience" and one of the best films of the year. Audience reaction, as one can see here, has been much more divisive.

One can see why. 'Under the Skin' is the sort of film that will captivate some and alienate others. Being somebody who does like science fiction (and often the more polarising, different and critically acclaimed ones), who really enjoyed the more linear satirical book and was intrigued by the concept, there was the hope that it would be as good as the critics said (being one of the few on IMDb who doesn't resort to immature critic bashing and can see more often than not where they're coming from). Did prepare myself, judging by the divisive audience reaction and how vitriolic some of the negative reactions have been, for disappointment or finding it not as good as made out while still acknowledging its strengths.

Seeing 'Under the Skin', much of it was very impressive. Can totally see why people disliked it, do share a few of the complaints myself, but can see even more why critics and many others loved it. Will not resort to the oh so common, overused and abused stereotypical phrases always spouted on people's tastes on both sides, wanting to be a fair and perceptive reviewer and not someone who thinks only their opinion is right and nobody else's is (seen a lot around here).

'Under the Skin' to me wasn't perfect. Maybe it would have worked better as a short film. Can see why the slow pacing was adopted, for atmosphere and immersing into the world reasons, but there are parts that are a bit too drawn-out and meandering which doesn't always make the film as attention-grabbing as it could have been. The story structurally is a very slight one and not a conventional narrative, this is not always a problem in film and it cannot be denied that in terms of creating a mood and atmosphere that this is a triumph, sometimes it did feel too thin and while the basic concept is clear cohesion is not always a strength. Anybody feeling that there are unanswered questions here will find that the book, which has much more depth and clarity, provides the answers.

However, 'Under the Skin' does look amazing with some startlingly original imagery that really haunts the mind. The cinematography and eerie lighting, as well as the beautiful but austere Scottish landscapes, help make it one of the visually best-looking films that year. A big star is Mica Levi's electronic score that relies on drums and strings, this is one nerve-shredding music score with the freakiest use of strings for any film seen in recent memory.

The film is a triumph of mood and atmosphere. There is a real sense of queasy horror, eerie chills and an otherworldliness. Standout scenes here are the jaw-dropping cosmic sequence, reminding one of '2001: A Space Odyssey', the nightmarish and tension-filled beach scene and the poetic, sensual but pretty creepy seduction. Jonathan Glazer does a fine job directing, particularly in immersing the viewer into this world. The script is minimal but hardly weak.

Scarlett Johansson is mesmerising here in one of her best performances, she's rarely been more sensual and she shows a mastery of conveying so much while saying little, very hard to do and under-appreciated by many. Adam Pearson also gives a disturbing but poignant performance. Other than them, the rest of the acting is competent but not standout-worthy or memorable while never being disastrous or bad.

In conclusion, not mind-blowingly incredible and understandably divisive but one of those experiences that is hard not to forget. 7/10 Bethany Cox

The problem with movies like this is that you have the people who hate slow, mysterious movies and it's automatically 1 star because there were no car chases or dubstep, and the people that feel they have to defend anything quiet and ambiguous like this and give 9 or 10 stars. "So boring" vs "You just don't get it, man". These types of films always only get 1 or 10 ratings. Really, it's not possible to make a so-so version?

Sometimes people try to make moody, interesting, thought provoking, different kinds of movies and just don't do a great job. This film was right up my alley in every way, but in the end I just said "meh". It wasn't awful, but it did feel a little dull and needlessly drawn out, seemingly because there just wasn't enough to say to fill the time. There also wasn't much to get, really people, it's not that deep or obtuse.

If there had been more eye candy (besides the obvious) I could have dealt with the other weaknesses easier. But I didn't think the visuals were all that interesting as a lot of people seem to. The whole thing was very film school and didn't totally feel like the work of a mature director, but if you told me it was a student film or something a first timer made on credit cards I would have believed you and said "hey nice effort, keep at it".

I would like to give it more than a 4 just because it's totally my kind of film, but it really didn't deserve it, and as I said, that's the problem with these kinds of movies, people voting for what kind of film they like instead of how good this particular one was.

I am a Scarlett Johansson fan, ever since I saw her in "Horse Whisperer" in 1998. Realizing I had not seen this one yet, I managed to find it via the Kanopy streaming service through my public library's subscription.

It is not a mainstream movie, with a clear story and character motivations. It is a good watch for those who enjoy occasionally exploring alternative themes and filming styles. There is a vague opening, to suggest that an alien character has arrived and will explore Earth, in the process hunting down unsuspecting males. Scarlett Johansson plays the lead and is only known as "The Female."

All filmed in Scotland, much of it outside towns and cities in the unusual and mostly beautiful countryside. There isn't much action, nor is there much dialog. The film is atmospheric and attractive, and when it ends it is very easy to think "so what?"

I am glad I took the time to watch it but I will estimate that most lovers of clear-cut, mainstream movies will not enjoy it.