Swallow: It Blows (A Movie Review)
When I see a movie drenched in praise such as “brilliant”, “clever”, and “wonderful”, I’m instantly skeptical. Especially when I hear that viewers were moved to tears. Why? Well, because I’m a skeptic and most of the flicks I watch happen to really really suck.
Enter Swallow, a psychological thriller with slivers of body horror sewn into its flesh. The movie tells the story of Hunter, a seemingly happy housewife with the world at her fingertips. And by that I mean she literally has it made. She married into a loaded family and has a handsome husband who loves her unconditionally while she sits home doing fuck all. On top of that, they’re expecting, and very excited to culminate their family with a beautiful bundle of joy.
But not everything is what it seems. Hunter isn’t happy. In fact, she’s got serious issues. To the point where she suddenly starts to swallow random objects around the house. Let’s see, there’s the shiny marble that started it all, a tasty tack, and a flavorful battery. Yummy! Apparently this is a real-life condition called pica. According to Hunter, as told to her therapist, swallowing these random items gives her a sense of power. Allows her to seize a measure of control. Some of it even feels good in her mouth.
Of course what goes in, must come out, so I couldn’t help wondering if she would’ve been better off using those objects in reverse. I reckon some backdoor shenanigans with said objects would be far more satisfying than ripping your bum apart to shit them out before sifting through said shit to retrieve and add said items to your make-shift trophy case. Yeah. She totally did that shit. SMMFH.
By now, it’s clear that Hunter isn’t well. She eventually reveals that a quasi-traumatic past is the trigger for all this tomfoolery. You see, she’s a rape baby. And despite the fact that her mother, the ultimate victim of this horrific crime, soldiered on and carved out a good life with a stepfather who treated her like his own flesh and blood, Hunter is driven to the brink of insanity by the incident. While she has a solid support system in her husband and in-laws, she ultimately wigs out and feels the need to confront her sperm donor to learn what she always wanted to know: “Am I like you?”. SMMFH.
Look …
Mental health is serious. I understand. Past traumatic experiences can randomly pop up in the present and make life difficult for the afflicted. I get it. I just thought the movie failed at exploring this topic in detail and making a sympathetic figure out of Hunter. I actually felt more sympathy for the husband, who’s supposed to be the bad guy in this so-called ‘toxic’ relationship. After all, he’s the son of rich parents who want to control every facet of his life, marital assets included. Only his parents were very kind and supporting of Hunter. It wasn’t until realizing that her refusal to take responsibility and seek treatment for her issues could put the unborn child’s life at risk that they started to become annoyed with all the shenanigans. Still, none of them, the parents, nor their son, were truly ever the monstrous antagonists this movie tried so timidly to make them out to be.
By the time Swallow concludes, Hunter is seen smiling, seemingly on the road to redemption — all alone and without ever actually securing any tangible treatment for these severe mental issues she displayed over the course of the film. Meanwhile, hubby is left without a wife and due to her reckless actions, he may not be a daddy, either. But those are dots we’re left to connect on our own time. Because fuck this guy and how all his wife’s erratic behavior impacts him. It’s all about Hunter. She’s the real victim here.
Last Word
Keep in mind that this isn’t your typical crap movie. It’s well paced and intriguing throughout. At the same time, I absolutely loathed the message it tries to send and the passive aggressively pitiful means it uses to deliver it. But like I said, it was “critically acclaimed”, so maybe I’m just a heartless asshole. Whatever, ya mutha. That said, the fact that Haley Bennett looks like a healthy slice of chocolate cheesecake with peanut butter sprinkles drizzled over it is not lost on Yours Truly. Sure, her character annoyed me to the core, but that only means she played the role to the absolute tee. So there ya go. Praise from me.
Contel Bradford is a mystical and complex individual. You can attempt to unravel some of the mystery by visiting his author site at countkrewpublications.com.
