Review of Saltburn

Saltburn (2023)
6/10
Hodgepodge with some suspense, some tedium
7 November 2024
The film recalls a number of others, not only the obvious "Mr. Ripley" echoes, which take time to emerge, but hints of "The Go-between" and no doubt films on queer crushes I haven't even seen. One issue is the film spends FAR too much time at the school, when in fact the real drama doesn't develop until later. Once on the estate, the way Oliver is treated as a kind of audience/pet is what recalls "The Go-between". The satire on the upper class family variously echoes "Downton Abbey" and "The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie". Once the real violence emerges, it becomes so relentless it really doesn't maintain any suspense. Oliver's fascination with Felix outlines a whole intense homoerotic thread that is almost separate from what proves to be the real story, and includes one really striking and explicit homage. There is a certain beauty to the portrayal of an upper class family shattered by grief continuing to cling to its most formal and superficial discourse. This would be hilarious if the situation wasn't so tragic. If all this seems all over the place, touching on different themes and styles, well so it is, making the film at times hard to stick with, at times mechanically predictable.
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