Under the Skin @10: A Perfect Opening
Jonathan Glazer has scarcely left the news cycle since Oscar night. His speech against genocide caused much furor in Hollywood, where accusations of anti-semitism were promptly lobbied against the filmmaker. That said, today's topic isn't that media storm or the director's recent contributions to the Cinema for Gaza campaign. Instead, it's time to honor Glazer's third feature, which celebrates ten years since its US release. Loosely adapted from a Michel Farber novel, Under the Skin follows Scarlett Johansson as she roams the Scottish landscape in search of men. She's an alien creature whose conquests meet a nightmarish demise, and her film is one of last decade's most tremendous cinematic achievements.
I'd go so far as saying that any "best of the 2010s" list that doesn't include it is highly suspect. Indeed, Under the Skin secured its masterpiece status rather instantly in my eyes, its opening like the protagonist's seduction – impossible to resist even as it plunges you into oblivion…