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Anna Biller’s 'The Face of Horror' Revives Medieval Themes with Sharp Feminist Commentary
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In Short: IndieWire praises Anna Biller's latest feature, 'The Face of Horror,' for its vivid Technicolor visuals and incisive exploration of dating dynamics through a medieval lens.
Director Anna Biller, who has been absent from feature filmmaking for a decade, returns with a voice as sharp and distinct as ever, as noted by IndieWire.
Beyond its visual appeal, the medieval setting serves as an excellent thematic match for Biller's narrative sensibilities, as highlighted by IndieWire, which notes the script's tendency to pause the plot for tangents on the paradoxes of womanhood.
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- “ The Face of Horror ” plays like a lost Canterbury Tale, using a medieval backdrop to tell a story of selfishness, hedonism, and body dysmorphia that likely would have played like an astute analysis of dating dynamics at any point in human history.
- The girls reluctantly acquiesce… and believe it or not, it’s not even the worst thing these men do in “The Face of Horror!” Fast forward to a year later, and Eleanor is increasingly annoyed that Edward keeps putting off her request to find her father’s killer — and with the energy of a husband insisting he’ll clean the gutters next weekend.
- Edward is so frustrated by what he perceives as a lack of gratitude that he runs off and finds a side chick in another kingdom.
- Beyond the obvious visual advantages — don’t even pretend you’re not interested in seeing Biller and her collaborators stage a series of castles and royal feasts with princesses and jesters wearing every color of the rainbow — the medieval setting is an excellent thematic match for the filmmaker’s narrative sensibilities.
- Biller’s script takes a similar approach, often pausing the plot as characters embark on tangents about the paradoxes of womanhood.
Sources
- IndieWirelink