Displaying items by tag: Kit Harrington

THE BEAST WITHIN

UK, 2024, 97 minutes, Colour.

Kit Harrington, Ashleigh Cummings, Caoillin Springall, James Cosmo.

Directed by Alexandre J. Farrell.

An atmospheric horror thriller, somewhat different from what might have been expected. It is a werewolf story but the setting is in the forests of Scotland.

The audience is reminded about the mythology of the werewolf as the film opens. Ultimately, there will be the visual, frightening manifestations of the werewolf. But, at the beginning, the focus is on a family in the forests, the father, played by Kit Harrington, a worker, his wife, Caoillin Springall, tense, working at home, focusing on their daughter, Ashleigh Cummings, a reader, caught up in her own imagination, and concerned about her father. The other member of the family is the grandfather played by veteran James Cosmo.

There are dramatic tension is in the house, and gradual revelations that, monthly, the father has to withdraw, to be locked up, his experiencing the werewolf transformation. And this has repercussions, often violent, on the rest of the members of the family.

As anticipated with some tension, there are final confrontations and revelations, visually frightening, menacing for the members of the family.

Most werewolf films from the past have an American setting. This one than is quite different.

1. A Scottish werewolf story? The opening quotation? The mythology of werewolves, the full moon, the blood moon, the werewolves and their will form, and the beast within?
2. The Scottish settings, the landscapes, the ancient wall, the countryside, atmosphere? The home, the shed, the cars on the roads? The musical score?
3. The family, ordinary, the relationships, the work, Noah as the father, husband, work, the relationship with each member of the family? Imagine, wife and mother, devoted? Willow, her age, breathing apparatus, her reading, the only child, alone, loneliness, her relationship with her parents? The grandfather, his place in the house, with each of the family members?
4. Ominous suggestions, the blood moon, the seasons, Willow and her room, reading, her observing out the window, standing at the upper landing? The title and expectations?
5. Noah, his experience, seeing him at work, with each member of the family? The early intimations, the gradual revelation of his transformation, locked in the shed, Willow and her watching, concern? The visualising eventually of the wolf, the walls, the pain, the encounter with his wife and daughter? The grandfather, his concern, his being impaled on the stag horns? Carrying him outside?
6. The film highlighting the contrast between Noah and his ordinary life, and for his transformation, the preparations, the isolation?
7. The bond between mother and daughter, outings together, protective?
8. The finale, the confrontation – and the future?

BABY RUBY

US, 2022, 93 minutes, Colour.

Noemie Merlant, Kit Harrington, Jayne Atkinson, Reed Birney.

Directed by Bess Wohl.

Baby Ruby sounds very nice as a title for a film. However, this is a serious film, touches of anxiety, depression, psychosis.

While the setting is the United States, the leading actors come from outside the US, Noemi Merlant is French and this is referred to, while Kit Harrington, famous for Game of Thrones) is British. He is a butcher in a small American town. She is pregnant, an Influencer with her posts and articles online, with quite a following, especially in the town. At the opening of the film, she is preparing a baby shower for herself and the child to be born.

Response to the film will depend on perspectives and experience. There is the male experience, the experience of fathers. There is the female experience, of pregnancy, giving birth, of post-partum anxiety.

After the birth, Jo finds the continued crying of the baby most stressful. However, over the time, tending the baby, feeding it, getting exasperated, going to the doctor who reassures them that there is nothing wrong with the baby, she becomes more and more depressed, more anxious, some quite erratic behaviour, even sexually, with a neighbour, her husband puzzled, her seeing suspicious aspects everywhere, and the presence and comments from her mother-in-law.

The mother has some hallucinations – and some wondering whether the whole film is something of a hallucination.

The film is a portrait of a mother becoming more and more desperate, a nice husband and his inability to help, a mother-in-law his who is both interfering and supportive.

1. The title, a film about mothers and babies, pregnancy, expectations, birth, post-partum anxieties, psychosis?
2. The American town, ordinary, the butcher, the influence and her friends, testing, doctors, ordinary life, sinister aspects of ordinary life? The musical score?
3. The focus on Jo, French background, in the US, married to Spencer, online, her posts, influence, admired? Spencer, ordinary, the butcher, love for his wife? His mother and her presence, dominating, helpful, critical?
4. The pregnancy, the preparation for the Baby shower, the women arriving, the happy situation? The beginnings of Jo and her apprehensions? The birth?
5. The consequences for Jo, love for the baby, calling her Ruby? Spencer and his devotion? The friends wanting posts about the baby, Jo not putting them online?
6. Audience identification with Jo, women’s perspective, man’s perspective, mothers, fathers, grandparents? Empathy with Jo and her tensions? And the baby crying?
7. The effect on Jo, the continued crying, her anxieties, depression, behaviour? Yet her love for the baby, the books, the visit to the doctor, nothing wrong with the baby, his seeming criticism, her reading, thinking that the baby was trying to communicate with her?
8. The consequences at home, Spencer and his devotion, trying to help, at work? The baby crying, the nights, during the day, outings? Time passing?
9. Doris, her presence, her comments, criticisms, support? Her story about Spencer as a baby and the difficulties?
10. The ominous aspects, the memory of the woman approaching Jo at the store, not allowing her to remove the cover to disturb the baby? Her being part of the group? The later encounter is, in the street?
11. Jo, more anxious, wanting to go out, the party, her drinking, the sexual encounter, as a dream or reality, the aftermath and the woman explaining the experience? Sinister suggestions and suspicions, the meat from the butchers…?
12. The cumulative effect on Jo, medication, institution, becoming calm, coming home again, the baby crying, the baby giving a message?
13. The buildup to the ending, ominous, and the tension for the audience, whatever their experience of babies, for anxiety for mother and child?