Saltburn - Review: We're All About to Go Insane

 

After her debut film in 2020, writer/director Emerald Fennell (“Promising Young Woman”) is back with another feature that seems tailor made to create absolute havoc in its subject matter and stylistic choices. “Saltburn” is an acid-soaked modern rendition of “The Talented Mr. Ripley” in a way only a madwoman like Fennell could give us. 

Set in 2006, the film follows Oliver Quick, played by Barry Keogan (“Eternals,” “The Banshees of Inisherin”), an awkward Oxford student who befriends popular preppy boy Felix Catton, played by Jacob Elordi (“euphoria,” “The Kissing Booth”), who invites him to spend the holiday at his family’s estate, the titular Saltburn manor. While there, Oliver quickly falls into favor with Felix’s family consisting of his mother Lady Elspeth, played by Rosamund Pike (“Gone Girl,” “Pride and Prejudice (2005)”), his father Sir James, played by Richard E. Grant (“Withnail and I,” “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”), his sister Venetia, played by Alison Oliver (“Conversations with Friends,” “Best Interests”), his cousin Farleigh, played by Archie Madekwe (“See,” “Gran Turismo”), and family friend “poor Dear” Pamela, played by Carey Mulligan (“Promising Young Woman,” “The Great Gatsby (2013)”), all observed by loyal stoic butler Duncan, played by Paul Rhys (“Chaplin,” “A Discovery of Witches). Slowly through the stay though, Oliver begins to set each member against one another, causing them all to slowly start losing their minds. 

First things first, this is a truly insane film on multiple levels. Fennell has crafted an unhinged piece of psychological cinema that will have you on the edge of your seat and jaw on the floor for a good two-thirds of the runtime. She crafts moments that not only escalate in logically illogical ways, but that still track with Oliver’s decisions and the maddening heat of the summer holiday. It’s an impeccably crafted script, fleshed out to its fullest potential thanks to its fully game cast and sense of insane direction. 

Keogan and Elordi have a fantastic balance, a back and forth that leaves you constantly questioning the extent of their friendship and feelings for each other. Keogan rides the line between pathetic coward and sinister plotter to excellent results, and Elordi perfectly plays the popularity king role. Felix’ family are also great, set up as comical symbols of excess before being slowly torn down and tossed in front of the viewer as limp shells of their former selves. Pike in particular plays the role of self-serious rich mother so insanely well, you’d think the character was just herself and only happened to be filmed. 

Shot in full screen “academy ratio”, Fennell and cinematographer Linus Sandgren (“La La Land,” “No Time to Die”) frames each moment with a claustrophobic sense of excess. Saltburn manor is cluttered but also so massive it gives one the sense of being smothered in a sense of emptiness. It's a great display of the production design as well, which is choked full of beautiful excess smothered with dirty laundry and modern conveniences. There’s a shot early on in the film of the family watching “Superbad” on a medium sized plasma TV in the midst of a giant ornate room that perfectly summarizes the visual identity of the entire film. 

With a jukebox of early 2000s hits playing alongside a great score from Anthony Willis (“Promising Young Woman,” “M3GAN”), the time period ends up having a huge influence on the vibes and energy of the film as a whole. More than most other movies set in recent years, the chaos of the early 2000s fits Oliver’s vibe and mission to an expert level. There’s just something about the idea that Fennell has set this insane tale in 2006, the same year that Google bought YouTube and “Hannah Montana” premiered on TV, that adds to the madness and haze of it all. 

“Saltburn” is not for everyone and will likely be hugely derided by most. But for those who can get on its wavelength, this is a hugely enjoyable, wildly sexy, debaucherous tale. Fennell fills this world of excess and claustrophobic emptiness with precision and a haze of early 2000s nostalgia and needle drops, danced through by her cast of completely game entertainers. It’s a wild tale of a house full of bad people slowly losing their minds. 5/5