Synopsis

In a remote village, a young boy named Nicolas (Max Brebant) finds a dead body while swimming in the ocean. He tells his mother (Julie-Marie Parmentier), and she dives down to see it but only finds a red starfish. After getting into a fight with some boys, Nicolas’ mother takes him to a hospital for treatment. The doctors give him an injection above the stomach and room him with other boys who’ve had similar injections. Once released, Nicolas starts wondering if his mother and the other women in the village have been lying to him. He sneaks out at night and sees the women performing some bizarre ritual in the nude. Later, Nicolas notices that his mother has odd growths on her back that look like cephalopod suckers. However, what he’s about to discover about the injections will be more horrifying than he could’ve ever imagined.

Review

Going into Evolution, I had no idea what to expect other than a typical French film: slow and artsy. While it’s slower-paced and more about visuals, this is possibly one of the strangest movies I’ve seen lately. There are plenty of long, static shots that create a feeling of isolation, and the slow pace makes you feel uneasy. There’s very little dialogue, as the filmmakers rely more on the visuals than on having characters explain things. Much like The Human Centipede, I feel like the concept is more disgusting than what the movie presents us with. Thankfully, this film is much better than Tom Six’s notorious shocker, and I’m curious to see Lucile Hadžihalilović’s other work. Regardless of whatever issues I had, I have to commend her work, as this movie has an eerie presence. Above all else, this is undoubtedly a treat to the eyes.

The acting is the stereotypical brooding, melancholy performance you would expect from a French arthouse film. Everyone delivers their lines so joylessly that it almost sucks the happiness out of you and put you to sleep. For his part, Max Brebant makes for a decent protagonist, being just as confused about what’s happening as we are. Plenty of people can relate to being a kid who doubts authority figures and questions everything they’re told. Julie-Marie Parmentier works as the mother figure who seems calm and peaceful, but has a dark side to her. There are some genuinely bizarre visuals sprinkled throughout, though they’ll confuse you more than scare you. Even at slightly over 80 minutes, the film feels padded and ends so abruptly that you’re unsure what you saw. Overall, Evolution certainly isn’t a bad movie, but it’s not one I see myself revisiting anytime soon.

Buy Evolution from Amazon: https://amzn.to/3PbXqEK.

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