Body horror. The very term makes me queasy. I threw up. The biggest flaw with the film is that we never see what makes this woman who she is, or not enough of it, to illicit any emotion but disgust. A lot of disgust and a little apathy. But this film isn't a character study -- it's a "disease study." It's not about the human element - it's exploitation of a macabre illness. Cringe-inducing exploitation.
A story about a woman tearing, eating, and slowly self mutilating herself. Literally.
In My Skin is a bizarre, bloody grotesque, and disturbing little film. Not a movie for everyone, especially for those with a weak stomach, but for those who are looking for something completely different, in a strangely deranged unique way, this is definitely the movie for you.
In My Skin very much reminds me of some kind of David Cronenberg film. Strange, graphic and bloody, but yet very compelling at the same time. Gore aside, this movie also has some great performances, and the art direction is top notch. It's an artsy film where everything here moves at an extremely slow pace, but nevertheless, it all still seems so strangely beautiful. There's some strange message here hidden behind all the gruesome imagery, one that needs to be examined by viewers, where we can share our opinions and try to understand the actual point. Would someone, as the female character in this movie, really do the kind of things that she did? I really don't know. But out of all the crazy things that people do in this world, I wouldn't really find it hard to believe that someone, somewhere, would be doing something like this.
Plot:
"Attending a party, Esther decides to catch a breath of fresh air in the garden and accidentally cuts herself severely. Only later does she realize her injury and when telling this to her doctor, he asks her, "Does this leg belong to you?"
While his question notes upon the irony of the situation, it actually is exactly what goes on in Esther's mind, as her body and mind are two. Hardly has her wound healed, before she cuts it open again, both in order to feel the pain, but also to watch how her flesh reacts. Slowly she becomes obsessed about her flesh, her blood and mutilating herself, going thru phases of self-vampirism and self-cannibalism, to a point, where she begins to peal her skin off, for later to take it out and feel it. Equally slowly, she becomes detached from the world around her, giving up friends and her job, retracting herself into a world, where she can be alone with her pealed skin.
The self-mutilation of Esther begins as any other act of self-mutilation, due to stress and low self esteem. She isn't as attractive as her girlfriend, nor as successful at work. During the early stages of the film, while her girlfriend is writing a report for the ministry unsupervised, she has to rewrite her report, as her boss found it flawed. But soon it becomes obvious, that she has become addicted to it. During a business dinner, the image of her boss pealing a grape excites her to such a degree, that she first rips her stocking, then, as she watches her arm being detached from her body, has to go away for a moment, to satisfy her urge by cutting herself over and over. Its not lust, but addiction, and within days, her addiction has reached a level, where she hardly can get home, before she maniacally indulges in acts of self-vampirism."
This movie also focuses a lot on slow driven character study. At first it gets us weirdly acquainted with the female lead, just enough as to where her pain later becomes more believable to us, and as the film goes on it only becomes even more shocking. I recommend this movie only for those of you who are really into extreme cinema.
Other Reviews:
"As unrelenting an exploration of isolation and dissociation as Roman Polanski's Repulsion."
- The New York Times
"A bizarre exercise in perversion that will well test even the most jaded art house audiences' appetite for the offbeat."
- The Hollywood Reporter
"Fiercely uncompromising psychodrama infused with a keen intelligence and a sinister primordiality."
- Chicago Reader
"In My Skin takes that pain/pleasure principle and magnifies it until you're either dumbstruck or running screaming from the theater."
- Boston Globe
"A truly trangressive film as unsettling as it is psychologically acute."
- TV Guide
"An experience you won't easily shake."
- Entertainment Weekly
"Spectacularly grotesque and literally nauseating, even for this usually intrepid moviegoer, In My Skin is among the more disturbing films in this blood-drenched cinematic season."
- Los Angeles Times
The kind of film any Gore master would love. It explores serious issues of eroticism, control and women's relationships to their own bodies, and should be seen by anyone whose stomach is strong enough to withstand it. The lead actress, Marina de Van, gives one of the most powerful performances I've ever seen.
I couldn't watch more than 20 minutes because I really felt the woman's pain, maybe I'll give a try another time, but I really believe it's a good movie
This sucker really gets under your skin. I watch alot of movies and alot of which are quite gory and disturbing, yet this movie is really un-easy to shake off. Some of the parts in this film really makes me cringe. If you think you can take it, don't waste time, go and watch this film.
This movie is not for everyone, but I liked it. Definitely not for the faint of heart. About a woman who finds a newfound passion for self-mutilation after an accident leaves her scarred.
Much like Roman Polanski's Repulsion, In My Skin chronicles a young woman's descent into madness. Esther (Marina de Van) accidentally gashes her leg at a party, but instead of being alarmed by the sight of her torn flesh, she becomes...
Boy this is a hard one to describe. Clearly a very personal film by Mariana de Van, who also wrote and starred in it, it can often be a harrowing experience to endure.
The film is about the exploration of Marina de Van's relationship with her body, which can often feel as detatched from her mind as she sometimes feels from the rest of society. Her cutting is at times erotic, at times savage and at times scientific. There is a phenomenal dinner scene where many of the film's themes are laid bare: as Marina sits, unable to relate to any of what her co-workers are saying, she also fantasizes she's lost control of her arm, and through self-injury is able to regain it and keep from drifting off into her own self-absorptions.
Didnt know what i was getting my self into when renting this. Sick movie about this woman who has this obession about cutting herself and seeing blood and just self muitation in general. If you are squeamish stay away from this one.
Un premier film très intéressant dans sa forme. Sujet extrêmement délicat. Beaucoup de ressemblance avec Cronenberg. Par contre, quelques scènes inutiles qui tombent à plat. Un des films les plus dégueulasses que j'ai vu dans ma vie!
Marina de Van is lovely but sick. This movie could've been a lot better. The setting is great, the mood is good... but the ending is out of key and feels kinda rushed.
MCT:July 14, 2008
MCT:June 9, 2008
MCT:May 17, 2008
MCT:August 13, 2007
MCT:August 2, 2007
