Black Rock Review

Director: Katie Aselton

Cast: Kate Bosworth, Katie Aselton, Lake Bell, Will Bouvier, Jay Paulson, Anslem Richardson,

Running time: 71 minutes

Certificate: 15

Synopsis: A trio of women head off to an old childhood haunt to spend a weekend together and patch up some disputes. While on the island they meet a trio of male hunters, and after some drunken flirtations get out of hand, one of the men ends up dead. The women soon find themselves in a position where they must remain the hunted, or become the hunters.

Actress/writer/director Katie Aselton joins together with her actor/writer/director husband (Mark Duplass) to script this minimalist survival horror. It can easily be pitched as a mixed-gender DELIVERANCE, but BLACK ROCK has a surprising amount of social commentary to bestow through its tense and sinister premise. Films that try and flip the view of women as mere victims in horror/thrillers can often be heralded as ‘feminist propaganda’, but rather than supply a ham-fisted take on gender dominance, Aselton looks at humanity as a whole.

From the opening moments, a true bond is established for the female trinity thanks to some natural dialogue. There are some clunky moments of ambiguous lines which try and evoke some conflict, but it’s also pretty obvious as to where it’s headed. As the threesome head off to an isolated island the film does well to trick you into forgetting its own genre. This could very easily be the set-up for a neatly woven drama on the loss of youth. As ‘secrets’ are revealed, it becomes apparent that the film has no intention of presenting these women as helpless, nor are they going to be shown as perfect human beings. In fact, they’re downright unlikable in some instances. The chemistry between the leads is well developed, and even in the early stages Bell, Aselton, and Bosworth give strong performances.

Even at the point where the male characters are introduced, they are not represented as your average woodland stalking madmen. In fact, they’re war veterans who seem nice enough and hardly threatening at all. It’s a move that could easily be misinterpreted as an anti-military stance from the director once all hell breaks loose, but it’s so much more than that. BLACK ROCK is an uncomfortable film that looks at the poisonous trait that is blame. The film will cause a lot of controversy as some viewers will ignorantly argue that Aselton’s married Abby is the cause of all the problems as she leads one of the guys on, drunkenly ushering him into the woods and kissing him, before changing her mind. But what the film does very well, even if the audience doesn’t realise it, is it puts us into the shoes of the characters. It’s easy to blame Abby for what soon transpires, just as she blames her poor marriage on her drunken behaviour, or just as the soldiers blame their government for unfair treatment.

Whether we like it or not, we’re all responsible for our own actions but blame and anger only leads to a worsening of the situation. It’s an uncomfortable truth that plays well into the survival aspects of the film. It’s only once the characters start taking control of their actions that they get the upper hand. The final half of the film is a rather furious cat and mouse game, which although involving also seemed to drag in points. This may be because we’re supposed to hold some contempt for each of the characters to a certain degree, and so it isn’t until later that we start rooting for a specific side.

BLACK ROCK is one of those films that isn’t afraid to be disliked or spat at, but for those willing to watch the film with an open mind from the perspective of all involved, they are likely to discover a film that mixes unsettling themes, memorable visuals, and great performances. Rough around the edges it may be, but it’s a promising addition to Aselton’s directorial career.

BLACK ROCK is released in UK cinemas on 21st June.