
A failed writer strung out on drink and drugs fantasises about the perfect hara-kiri style suicide. Whilst burning his scripts in the garden he is interrupted by a mysterious, shady visitor with dubious intent.
When the world lost Chadwick Boseman on August 28, 2020, we all saw the impact of representation in film. Boseman was not only a Black superhero leading a Black cast in one of the most successful films in history; but his successes paved the way for more, long-overdue diversity in Hollywood.
I write for a diversity-focused film review blog, so I’ll be honest: I really wanted to like Pretty Lethal. Starring Maddie Ziegler, Lana Condor, Iris Apatow, Avantika, and Millicent Simmonds, Amazon Prime’s new thriller seemed like it would be a girl power movie about dancers with a horror action twist. Sort of a Suspiria for teens. But with shallow and unlikeable characters, a confusing plot, an overreliance on violence, and cringey dialogue, any fun the movie started out with was quickly lost. What was left was a faint echo of greater horror movies about dancers made before.
The external threat invaded the domestic environment at the most valuable moment: grieving.
Given a choice between a man and a mountain, it’s safer to choose the mountain.
Fjord, like its story, is not a conclusion, but a beginning.