Behemoth review: eco-thriller gets a sci-fi horror makeover, with intense visuals

There’s a whole subgenre of real-life-inspired legal thrillers that emphasize the ecological horrors of life under capitalism. Erin brockovich, Michael clayton, Dark waters – they draw a clear line between the profits raised by corporations, the devastation inflicted on the natural world, and the reasons why people get sick. But those movies are firmly realistic dramas, of people arguing at tables. The indie thriller Behemoth he makes his way into this cinematic subset with a similar “The Companies Are Killing Us” theme, but uses a series of visual effects flirting with sci-fi and fantasy to give his message a nightmarish surreality. Something is sophisticated and dumber, but Behemoth it is tremendously effective most of the time.

Remember those ’90s B-movies that used to air on UPN in the wee hours of the morning, in that perfect time slot for stoned college students and kids staying up very late? Behemoth It has the best and worst elements of those films, with a sparse script and lean characters, but also an urgent conspiracy tone and a creatively rendered visual world, full of rotten faces, insect / human hybrids, and blood pouring out of the holes. There is a monster spreading tentacles of barbed wire, animals covered in sores and rotting meat, wilted plants and withered flowers. Behemoth It intermittently reveals its low budget of $ 65,000 with CGI work that’s a bit clunky around the edges and with a production design that feels limited to empty locations and few extras. But as the sum of its parts, it has a powerful impact.

Director Peter Sefchik is a longtime visual effects artist who has worked on films such as Thor: The Dark World and James Cameron. Avatar. Behemoth, his directorial debut, is powered by Joshua (Josh Eisenberg), a former sales representative for global chemical company De Pointe, who is so powerful it would “make the Boogeyman shit himself,” according to Joshua’s friend, Dominic (Richard Wagner). (If you want to be deeply depressed, read about DuPont actions and inspiration to Dark waters.)

After 10 years of working at De Pointe and seeing a myriad of reports describing the company’s role in countless ecological disasters, Joshua becomes a whistleblower to draw attention to De Pointe’s practices. But while waging a one-man war in the press and denying De Point’s claims that he is mentally ill, his young daughter becomes dangerously ill. No one can figure out what’s wrong, and Joshua and his wife Amy (Whitney Nielsen) grow apart as he obsessively falls down a conspiracy theory rabbit hole and tries to trace which toxin affiliated with De Pointe might be infecting their daughter.

After months of failed efforts, Joshua finally sees an opportunity. De Pointe’s global head of research and development, Dr. Luis C. Woeland (Paul Statman), presents at a conference, and Joshua, Dominic, and Dominic’s girlfriend, Keelee (Jennifer Churchich) spontaneously kidnap him, with the hope it offers some answers. when they tie him to a chair and physically threaten him in a motel on the outskirts of town. But Joshua’s attorney warns him: “They are really powerful people. They are not ashamed. They take revenge. “Dr. Woeland is not easy to convince, and he launches a steady, smiling stream of terse insults at Joshua’s” novel mix of stupidity and tenacity. “And there is something strange, something not quite human, about him. bodyguard Azello (Vadym Krasnenko), who in the Terminator style begins to track down the kidnappers.

Sefchik describes Behemoth inspired by the question “What if a group of activists kidnaps a powerful CEO and realizes that the man is not what he seems?” But it takes a while for the story to get going. The movie spends too much time on Joshua’s paranoia, his friction with Amy, and his internet research on Dr. Woeland. That exposition-filled introduction illustrates the problems with the film’s forced script, which was co-written by Sefchik and Derrick Ligas, and it doesn’t do its characters or artists any favors. The only person who really chews on this dialogue is Statman, whose highly expressive face bounces between bewildered and enraged, easily and frequently. His line deliveries convey a sarcastic, elite man irritated by the inconvenience of being kidnapped, and he’s absolutely the most naturalistic actor in the cast.

Despite the harsh performances (particularly from Eisenberg, who seems to mistake harshness for intensity), the characters’ emotional arcs feel good: Joshua’s despair and anger, Keelee’s longing and fear, impulsiveness. and Dominic’s cowardice. They are backed up by imagery from the film, featuring unease, terror, and blood – a bullet drawn from a stomach that is then twisted. Annihilation-style; a decomposing human face frozen in a smile; a multi-limbed monster that chases a person, grabbing their head between its jaws and then biting them with zeal. Editors Adam Janeczko and Kasia Lesniak rely too heavily on quick cuts to bombard audiences with shocking visuals. But Sefchik also knows when to slow down, forcing viewers to evaluate every iota of the cinematic frame, waiting for the inevitable elements of fantasy.

What’s that crawling behind Dominic in a parking lot? Why does Keelee’s reflection move independently of her? Why is the sculpture of a girl in Joshua’s motel room crying tears of blood? Enjoying creepy things also means accepting that BehemothDialogue sometimes sounds like it was written by an artificial intelligence generator trying to mimic human logic. But when the movie gets going after the first 40 minutes, its moments of entertainment help ensure a fair degree of success in the flashback.

Behemoth opens in cinemas and on digital rental platforms such as Voodoo and Apple tv August 27.