Score: 2.5/5
At the very least there’s a thrill to Saltburn despite its overall emptiness.
The second film by director Emerald Fennell has been making its rounds in the film community since its release. Starring Barry Keoghan and the rising star Jacob Elordi, the film is a stunning visual journey. It effectively makes audiences feel like voyeurs of a questionable world of hedonism, lust and power.
While it’s a sensorial thrill that isn’t afraid of entertaining depravity, Saltburn gets ahead of itself and loses control of its story after the first act leading to unresolved tensions and an ending that can only be described as a crash landing.
Set in a clique-infested Oxford University in the early 2000s, Saltburn follows social outcast Oliver Quick (Keoghan) as he cascades into the eccentric world of his elite classmate Felix Catton (Elordi). After undergoing a social metamorphosis during the school year, Quick is invited to Catton’s Saltburn family estate for a summer of intrigue, confusion and obsession. Soon, Quick learns that behind the glamour, he may have witnessed more than he should have about Catton’s peculiar family.
During its opening credits, Saltburn sets the precedent of being a visually striking film. Between the events at Oxford and the Saltburn estate, the film oozes sensual hedonism through its lush visuals, colour choices, set design and lighting. Several shots could easily be contenders for the most enthralling spectacles in film this year.
That being said, the unresolved mysteries and predictable twists render all the visual aspects lifeless and hollow. At best, they are carefully planned distractions to what the film attempts to reach for thematically.
Saltburn, then, sets the bar to a height it cannot reach, resulting in the plot taking the easy way out and providing a shallow commentary on class.
Among the many disappointments littered throughout Saltburn, the film’s thematic shift from the first act to its final is by far the worst. The first act of the film depicts the birth of obsession and teases elements of homoeroticism, the latter of which is entirely ignored by the end. Aside from its flat ending, hardly anything in the film isn’t implicit and up for speculation. With a conclusion better fit for the season finale of a soap-opera, the film forces audiences to ignore its many suggestive mysteries after throwing them out in the final act.
What could have been a unique tapestry of the stages of obsession ended up a barebones commentary on class dynamics that feels detached from what the film appeared to be reaching for. It’s almost shocking to see a film trying to critique class in 2023 with the ultimatum that “poor people will do anything to get what rich people have.”
Despite the convoluted script, Elordi shines as a memorable positive takeaway, further reminding audiences that he has a long career ahead of him. Notwithstanding his natural charisma in front of the camera, he feels like the glue holding Saltburn together even when everything takes a nosedive. In all the film’s chaos, Fennell makes sure Elordi’s onscreen presence is felt, and that the audience becomes as infatuated with him as the characters themselves.
Another highlight performance is Rosamund Pike’s supporting role. Known for her lead role in Gone Girl, Pike possesses a quietly intense gaze. Regardless of the many abnormalities of her character in Saltburn, it’s hard not to notice a serious dedication to acting behind her performance.
By its conclusion, all the film leaves audiences with is a delicious platter of visual choices complemented by a narrow aspect ratio. After forsaking the pathways it was carving out in the first act, Saltburn chooses the path of least resistance. The many vile acts featured in the film feel included for the sake of shock value rather than speaking to any themes left in the conclusion.
The entirety of the film’s plot feels like a missed opportunity for Fennell to create a unique story that lingers with audiences beyond shallow commentary. The appearance of Saltburn is alluring and glamorous, but appearances can be deceiving. In this case, Saltburn’s underbelly is a bland deception of its vibrant storytelling potential.