The real horrors are inside us

If “eat the rich” were a film, it would be Saltburn.

The sickeningly delightful sophomore feature from writer-director Emerald Fennell is a sensual and, at times, repulsive portrait of class in early-2000s England. Beginning at the University of Oxford, Saltburn follows an uneasy first-year student who finds himself spending the summer at the estate of his classmate’s eccentric aristocratic family. Inspired by films like The Handmaiden and The Servant, Saltburn is a story of power, eroticism, and manipulation that isn’t afraid of digging into the perversions that come with being human.

Following her Oscar-winning writing for Promising Young Woman, it comes as no surprise that Fennell is once again refusing to shy away from life’s inherent violences. Unlike other stories about class dynamics, Saltburn doesn’t stick to a straightforward criticism of the mega-rich. Instead, it takes the audience on a twisted journey into the corruptive nature of not only the possession of wealth but also the pursuit of it. This theme is embodied in the grandiose country house that becomes the central object of obsession and desire or, as Fennell calls it, the fetish object.

In an interview at the Austin Film Festival, Fennell describes her curiosity about the malleability of our identities and the various points of our lives at which we have the opportunity to remake ourselves. She explains that, as humans, we have a limited capacity to examine ourselves, which leaves us estranged from our inner truths. This is skilfully crafted in the juxtapositions between the reflections and the shadowy silhouettes that define the film’s visual style.

Fennell’s filmography so far has proven not only her unique ability to create 2000s pop-infused psychological thrillers but also her meticulous mastery of the distinction between horror and the horrific. Saltburn, like Promising Young Woman, is a lewd, candy-coated reminder that we don’t need to look to the fictional works of horror writers to face what we fear most. We need only look within ourselves to discover the most sinister realities of the human experience.

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