by Anthony O'Connor
Worth: $13.50
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Cast:
Yvonne Emilie Thälker, Damian Maffei, Marc Romeo, Scott Fowler, Vito Trigo, Kate Kiddo
Intro:
... provocative, subversive ...
We live in an increasingly alienated society, where young people – raised suckling at the dopamine-delivering teat of social media – are having a lot of trouble making romantic connections. Fewer people are having sex, making babies or even forming relationships. The rise of incels, those rootless wonders, all lead to one inescapable conclusion: sex robots are coming. Or perhaps, “are on the way” would be a better choice of words. The concept of artificial intimacy partners forms the core of writer/director Scooter McCrae’s provocative, subversive sci-fi thriller Black Eyed Susan, which certainly won’t be for everyone.
Black Eyed Susan is the story of down-on-his-luck, divorced dad Derek (Damian Maffei), who runs into his old friend Gilbert (Marc Romeo) at the wake of a mutual chum, Alan (Scott Fowler). Turns out, Gilbert needs someone to work at his fancy tech company. The job? To test the physical and sexual limits of their new highly advanced sex doll, Susan (Yvonne Emilie Thälker).
At first, Derek balks at the idea, especially when it becomes clear that he will need to physically beat the very lifelike Susan, but since he is currently living in his car and eating from the garbage, he reluctantly takes on the role. And then things start getting very weird and dark indeed.
Despite a shockingly confronting opening, and some disturbing themes throughout, Black Eyed Susan spends a lot of its runtime in thoughtful, introspective mode. Largely dealing with its heady themes and issues through dialogue between Derek and Gilbert (who is wonderfully creepy and sleazy) or Derek and Susan (who makes a fully committed screen debut). The result is a talky film that almost lulls you into a sense of comfort before the third act delivers one hell of a gut punch of an ending.
It bears repeating, this is not a film for everyone. The themes of domestic violence, sexual perversion, the commodification of desire and the dark interaction between sex work and capitalism make this an experience that is far from a crowd pleaser. It feels, thematically at least, a lot like 2008’s Deadgirl, which was similarly cerebral but also off-putting to all but the most hardy of audiences. However, for those seeking a clear eyed, albeit grim, look into our very near future, there’s enough here to elevate the experience beyond the very low budget and occasionally stilted acting.
Maybe don’t pick it as a first date movie, though.
