PIERCING (2019) Full review

Oh yeah, it's one of THOSE movies.

What we have here, is a failure to communicate as Strother Martin once said. Or at least a failure to connect with the audience. Basically, Reed (Christopher Abbott) has inclinations to harm his infant daughter and so decides he must search for and kill a prostitute to "get it out of his system". Talk about a forced, ludicrous premise. Before I get ahead of myself let me just say, I did NOT hate this movie but it does piss me off somewhat. The camera work, production and dialogue scream art but I just didn't get that. Let us crack this shell and find out what is underneath.

"Yeah, large Pepperoni...no anchovies!"

What worked for this film: Very little. Honestly, the characters are one-dimensional freakshows with little motivation for their outlandish behavior and brought to (still) life by appropriately pedestrian performances from the actors involved. Don't let the slick film quality fool you this is bare bones film-making with two interior locations and two actors. Neither character is very likable but I will say that Mia Wasikowska as Jackie at least made a show of it, unlike Abbott who stumbles and mumbles his words like a kid banned from the chess club. The running time at 81 minutes including opening sequence and credits is an indication that some scenes ran longer than necessary to attain a respectable run time (Like an 80's KISS album with two hits and the rest filler). Let's talk about the opening sequence. The music and lettering scream 70's grindhouse which is a misnomer as this film is anything but that.

"TCM: Next Gen 3.5/5??? Who is this Jimmy Ray guy?"

Admittedly I did like a few scenes and there are some stunning if disturbing visuals that take too long to get to. Even though I feel the film could have been much better, it appears the filmmakers at least tried to achieve something special and effort counts in my book. For those who disagree with my consensus, know this: I have read all of the arguments for emotional depth and intense situations, foreshadowing and poetic justice and I just don't get it. This is a talky film that goes nowhere with characters we care little about and of course there is the final scene which looks like it was added just to name the film. Look, I watched and liked BURIED with Ryan Reynolds in which the entire 90 minute film was a running shot of him buried alive in a coffin. For a film with only two actors and one situation to hold our attention and entertain there must be crisp dialogue, shock and awe and those subtle nuances that keep us riveted. This didn't have them.

Look at Reed's face closely here. That was my expression for most of this film.

In summation I would say that it's watchable at best and you should at least try it, you may get more out of it than I did. For a much better take on a similar would be killer, watch Jeff Bridges in THE VANISHING remake or take a gander at WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER a slightly similar film that did everything better than this one.

2.5/5