Infinity Pool
2023 Directed by Brandon Cronenberg
Horror Marathon Day 6 Film 10
Mia Goth is the muse through trial by fire to Alexander Skarsgard's troubled writer. What starts as a trip for inspiration for the writer seems to be destined for the banality of faux culture enrichment. The resort he's staying at has a gilded cage like atmophere- relying on visitors to never discover the real country. This set up feels a bit like a horror season of White Lotus. Instead of finding ourselves through the natural beauty of a space the rich get to have their xenophobic fears fully realized through death experiences. The science fiction element is welcome well enough- as body horror creeps up for Brandon Cronenberg's work. The other thematic tie between his other films are the skewed faces of masks- contorted human faces to represent the psychological.
Unfortunately this abstract concept of the killing of one's ego (or perhaps even having to kill the sacred cow of his own father in David Cronenberg)- becomes only half realized. The images gush with vibrancy, but all the tension of what's happening on screen almost seems farcical in its humiliation. The erotic element is dulled by drugged fueled orgies that don't have any coherent seduction - much as a music video may flash, but never really have the impact of a fully realized image.
This rebirth quality becomes a bit lost then- as much as the writer himself commenting on critical abuse and Mia's over-hyped antics don't give her any ability to show levels of sexual sorrow that was so relevant to "X." The idea of wealthy tourists letting themselves go to find their true primal selves isn't a new one- but I wonder if it could be explored in a way that could make the writer more culpable to his own derangement. There never seems to be any reponsibility taken upon himself for the happenings- just that things happened. The characters making choices- whether or not they end up to their detriment has to be at the core of a tale- otherwise we're just in for another horror amusement ride- and whatever meaning we give to it may just be over-intellectualized for what is pulpy thrill.