Watching Mysterious Skin is like waking up on a bright, sunny Saturday morning, making yourself a perfect cup of coffee, turning on your favorite cartoon, and finding spiders in your cereal. The nostalgic familiarity of the setting puts us at ease, but the subject matter rips us right out of our comfort zone.
Written and directed by Gregg Araki based on Scott Heim’s novel, the 2004 film follows “Neil” (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and “Brian” (Brady Corbet), both of whom experienced traumatic events as children that have left them scarred as young adults. Neil, who was molested by his Little League coach, has turned to prostitution, while Brian is convinced that he was abducted by aliens. As Brian searches for answers, he finds that he and Neil are linked in ways much more sinister than he could have imagined.
Despite being made in the early 2000’s, the film has a distinctly retro style, what with its late 80’s and early 90’s setting. The grainy visuals and use of 35 mm film make the piece seem cozy and familiar – that is, until Araki’s story takes over, promptly robbing us of our warm fuzzies and replacing them with morbid fascination.
Bringing a shocking amount of finesse to their roles are Chase Ellison and George Webster, who play the younger versions of Neil and Brian. They tackle the challenging material with remarkable bravery. As for their older counterparts, Gordon-Levitt balances beautifully on the line between vulnerability and abrasiveness, while Corbet’s naïve simplicity is a welcome contrast.
Mysterious Skin is not a film to watch if you want to have a good time. It is dark, dreary, and depressing, and at times, you might hate it – but you will not want to stop watching it, no matter how ugly it gets.
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