Lucky McKee scores with this tale of a lonely girl who will do anything to KEEP a friend!
Have you ever felt that you did not fit in? Or when you finally got the chance to do so, you just didn't know what to do, because it was so alien to you in the first place? I think this film exemplifies all of the above. In truth, I have at times felt like May. I was never a popular kid, so seeing May struggle to connect was something I could identify with. No one wants to be left out or alone. And I think that is why this film works as well as it does. Everyone has felt like May at one time or another. But May is just a little unstable and takes things to Frankenstein levels.
The movie starts off with an unsettling shot of a girl with blood all over her face, holding her hand over one eye. Then we are given a brief backstory of May (Angela Bettis), who was born with a lazy eye. She undergoes surgery to try to fix it, and has to wear a patch over it while it heals. The kids are cruel to her at school and ask her if she is a pirate. Her mom feels badly for May, and so decides to give her a doll that she had as a child...she tells May that the doll can be her best friend, since she can't make any on her own.
Then we catch up to May in current times. She works at the animal hospital, loves to sew, has a crush on the auto mechanic Adam (Jeremy Sisto) near where she works, and still has that freaking creepy doll. And her co-worker Polly (Anna Ferris), may just have a huge crush on her. Watching her attempts to try to get Adam's attention is awkward and at times frantic. May seems to be as fragile as glass, and indeed we are shown the glass case the doll is held in slowly crack as the movie progresses. May finally gets Adam to notice her and things pick up in her life. And we are shown that she will do anything to fit in, even pick up Adam's smoking habit. It seems that for the first time she is happy. But there is something odd about her fascination with Adam's hands. She tells him they are "perfect". A bad romantic hookup leads to Adam dumping her and even Polly seems to have betrayed her. What follows is a complete breakdown as poor May comes to the conclusion that there is only one way to keep someone around and they be faithful! The finale is just chilling and heartbreaking at the same time.
Angela Bettis really is a fantastic actress. She plays awkward to a tee, always shaking, sometimes being silent because she doesn't know what to say. Anna Ferris is fun to watch as Polly, who really has a thing for May, and hookers apparently. Jeremy Sisto also gives a good performance as Adam, who at one point falls in love with May, but can't figure out how to stay in love with her. The acting is just good all around. Gore in this movie is kept to a minimum, but it is shown, and at times is quite graphic. The soundtrack features indie bands, and fits the material well.
There are a few things that I loved. I loved that May tried to identify with blind children because they couldn't "see" her. And there is a scene involving May, the doll, and a group of these children that turns something very innocent into carnage. It's difficult watching May keep trying and keep failing, and falling deeper into psychosis as it goes forward, until she just can't take it anymore. In theme with the movie I reviewed yesterday, Adam is a Dario Argento fan and has a poster of Argento and his movie "Opera" on his wall. This poster depicts an "eye" as well. May wants people to see her, as she sees herself. McKee really is a great visual director...the scene with the blind children is really horrific because of the innocence of it all. It's just very well done. The isolation theme reminded me of Carrie as well.
I liked this movie because it had depth. It had a protagonist that is easy to identify with, and the acting is stellar. Watching May deconstruct, is at times horrifying and heartbreaking. She just wanted acceptance and to be loved. If you like your horror with a little bit of depth, then you will probably dig this.
9 out of 10
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