Swallow

“For good or ill, I happened to see SWALLOW after finally watching SAFE, Todd Haynes’ film from 1995. There were so many similarities–in characters, scenes, design–that I thought it might be a remake: a self-effacing housewife with a meaningless life and a rich, uninterested husband develops a mysterious illness.

“SWALLOW has more of a feeling of direct menace, and a sudden dramatic reversal that didn’t feel like it was of a piece with the rest. The team went all out on production design, and the message about women’s autonomy was clear. 3 cats.”

Julie responds: “Interestingly enough I just finished this one. It was hard to start watching after seeing the trailer but I’m glad I watched it.  I thought that on top of the fantastic production design and the spectacular views that greatly contributed to a good portion of  the cinematography, it was quite entertaining, especially with the dramatic turn. I found the ending scene, in total contrast to the beginning scene was subtly powerful on a few different levels. 4 cats“