There are films that claim to be “heady psychodramas,” but as soon as the title credits roll, warrant little more than an apathetic shrug. Then there are films that sneak up on you, drowning you in total cinematic dread and unease. Andrew Semans’s Resurrection, starring Rebecca Hall, is the latter.
If you’re looking for a movie that will give you more than the creeps and leave you shaken by the tour-de-force performances from its lead actors, then keep Resurrection on your radar.
Margaret (Rebecca Hall) is a biotech professional and single mother, and clearly has an anxious attachment to her daughter Abbie (Grace Kaufman). Margaret insists that it’s just typical motherly concern, but staunchly independent Abbie is still annoyed. However, when Margaret’s former partner David (Tim Roth) unexpectedly reappears in her life two decades after their last meeting, her increasing paranoia immediately disrupts her and her daughter’s lives.
Why is David here? What does he want? Resurrection doesn’t make these things immediately clear. The film turns into a brutal game of cat and mouse, and handheld camera movements heighten the intensity.
We soon find that Margaret isn’t entirely innocent here, though. In fact, she’s not the most redeemable of protagonists once we learn of David’s backstory and her involvement in it. Her decision to withhold her lifelong secrets from her daughter causes confusion and growing resentment. Further, hiding this ongoing threat from her co-workers derails her performance at work. Keeping this secret is causing Margaret to slowly unravel into a pile of anxiety and fear, and Rebecca Hall does a soul-shattering job of conveying Margaret’s out-of-control insanity.
The more Resurrection builds, the more David’s history of physical and psychological torture is also revealed, further adding to the overall suspense. He turns into a narcissistic, controlling blackmailer right before our eyes–but this behavior is something that Margaret knew all along.
Director Andrew Semans doesn’t let the audience off easy, though. The ending is both completely unhinged and totally satisfying. Resurrection is reminiscent of Titane in a myriad of ways (including its score by composer Jim Williams who recently worked on Ducournau’s body horror film). But also, for reasons of unexpected (inhuman) life forms that may play a role in the story.
Dark, deranged, and wildly surreal, Resurrection is a stunning psychological thriller that lingers. Backed by gripping performances by Hall and Roth–whose dynamic is unmatched–this is one film that will be hard to shake.
‘Resurrection’ was acquired by IFC Films and Shudder during the Sundance Film Festival.
