‘Men’ Is A Challenging Vision That Will Likely Divide Audiences

Director Alex Garland’s Men is not a movie I can say I liked or enjoyed, and I would consider myself a fan of much of his work, but I absolutely want people to see it so we can discuss it. I also respect the hell out of the fact that Garland felt confident and supported enough to be able to realize this surreal fever dream of a creative vision that will no doubt divide audiences. It is bold.

Men is a challenging watch for various reasons, from concept through execution. Still, as uncomfortable and disorientating as it can be to watch, it’s a horror show that captivates and is almost impossible to look away from. It’s one of the few movies I have considered walking out of before the end, but I couldn’t. I felt as trapped and cornered as Men’s lead, Jessie Buckley.

She plays traumatized widow Harper Marlowe, who has taken herself off to a cottage in the English countryside following her husband’s sudden, tragic, and gruesome death. The home she rents is owned by a man called Geoffrey, played by Rory Kinnear, a painfully posh middle-aged country gent hitting all the beats of the stereotype on the ruddied nose.

As Harper explores the local area, seeking space and solace, she finds herself in an increasingly bizarre and unsettling spiral of events. She encounters bizarre characters, either played by Kinnear or featuring his face CGI’d on, a range of nightmarish scenarios and seemingly fractured and disorientating realities. Not only that, but she believes a naked man might be stalking her. Making matters even worse, the seemingly rupturing and unraveling haven of Harper having her friend, Gayle, available for company and counsel at the other end of a phone seems to be an increasingly less secure foothold.

Both Kinnear and Buckley give genuinely superb and absorbing performances, but even then, they are sometimes overshadowed by the intensity of the visuals. Some of Men’s cinematography (courtesy of regular Garland collaborator Rob Hardy) is so effective and visceral that it haunted me for days after experiencing the film. I couldn’t shake it. Garland’s barbed script excels when it delivers dialogue that feels like fingernails on a chalkboard, making your stomach twist and drop. The words and scenarios cut deep and are uncomfortable. That is clearly his intention, and he succeeds.

Couple that with bizarre and sometimes grotesque folk horror imagery and a soundtrack by Ben Salisbury and Geoff Barrow that is like a hellish, jarring sound bath, and Men is an experience that might prove too much for many. The cherry on top is an eye-widening finale drenched in body horror that drove the audience I saw it with, including myself, to loudly vocalize a whole gamut of reactions from shock and awe to disgust and disbelief, among other things.

Men is a bold and visceral vision that gives off vibes reminiscent of the work by such visionary filmmakers as Peter Greenaway, Ben Wheatley, David Cronenberg, Ari Aster, Ken Russell, and such films as Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man. It manages to embrace tropes while also carving out its own space in a genre that can be challenging at the best of times. Given a choice between that or a watered-down version, I would always opt for a path similar to one forged by Men, even if the end result is ultimately not for me.

Garland’s work continues to surprise me, and his fearlessness is something I greatly appreciate. Also, hats off to A24 for believing in what I think is a deeply interesting and unsettling vision that left me with more questions than answers.

Men lands in theaters on Friday, May 20, 2022.