Saltburn

Saltburn is one of those movies where the style is so impressive the film earns my appreciation despite its serious flaws.

This is the saga of Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan), a young university student obsessed with a wealthy schoolmate at Oxford named Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi). They hit it off, and Felix invites him to spend the summer with his eccentric family at Saltburn, his vast country estate.

The technical craft of the production is beyond compare. Every scene is beautifully shot, like a painting. The cinematography by Linus Sandgren (La La Land, First Man) elevates the surroundings to the level of art. When Felix is showing Oliver around the manor, there’s a beauty to the way the camera follows him as Felix dismissively points out various places at the residence and what happened in each location. Furthermore, it begins in the fall of 2006. While 17 years ago is recent history compared to some historical epic, this presents the era like a period piece. The distinct fashion and music of that period are highlighted to splendid effect.

I enjoy the way director Emerald Fernel subverts our expectations. For roughly half the account, this is a tale about a shy, awkward outsider getting a seat at the table of elite society. However, as time passes, Oliver appears to ingratiate himself rather quickly in their company. They become smitten by him. The fact that these rich people are so ridiculously shallow is part of the comedy. In particular, Felix’s parents, portrayed by Rosamund Pike and Richard E. Grant, are entirely disconnected from reality. Their reaction to the gravity of a late development is inhuman. Their superficial personalities take the drama into the realm of a broad farce.

The interactions of these individuals are incredibly compelling. Emerald Fennell is an extremely talented writer and director. Her brilliant screenplay for the far superior Promising Young Woman won an Oscar for its takedown of societal sexism. The Saltburn script is less focused. Occasionally, Fennell can fall victim to excess. The chronicle incorporates multiple scenes that detail Oliver’s bizarre sexual impulses. The desire to shock is jarring. This is indeed her aim, but the jejune inclination derails the elevated mood of the rest of the narrative. Like a kid in a candy store, she indiscriminately grabs for everything at once. As a result, the intellectual point of her argument is muddled and eventually falls apart. Despite my caveats, this is an overall recommendation. Just proceed with caution.

11-21-23