Fresh
2022 · Directed by Mimi Cave
Original language: English
- horror
- thriller
- comedy
The story
Frustrated by scrolling dating apps only to end up on lame, tedious dates, Noa takes a chance by giving her number to the awkwardly charming Steve after a produce-section meet-cute at the grocery store.
What it’s like
Bright, glossy suburban daylight and supermarket fluorescents give way to a sleek, too-clean house where the light turns cool and clinical, with tight close-ups and smooth, unhurried camera moves that make ordinary dating small talk feel faintly off. The early tone is sunny and sardonic, with an upbeat pop-leaning score and playful rhythm, before a sharp turn into tense, sterile dread. The emotional register is wry, anxious and eventually grim, following a woman who sees the cracks in a charming new romance and tries to get out. Intensity is significant: a kidnapping, dread-heavy stretches, and graphic body horror with cannibalism and mutilation, shown in unflinching detail, though the sexual content is limited. Brief moments of dark humour cut through the horror, but it is not gentle and not for anyone seeking calm. It suits viewers who enjoy horror that satirises modern dating and female friendship, people comfortable with blunt gore, and anyone after a sharp, unsettling late-night watch with a bit of bite.
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