Sigmund and I wanted to watch a movie in the cinema last week. So we took a look at the agenda of the cinemas. We noticed that the movie Raw was playing in the Lumiere in Maastricht. The plot sounded interesting and we always love watching horror movies in the cinema. So this was an easy decision! We were going to see Raw.
Raw is a French drama/ horror movie directed by Julia Ducournau. The original title of the movie is Grave. Raw is about Justine. She's still living with her parents but now she's moving out to study. She's a vegetarian and wants to become a vet. She starts with her first study year and goes to the same school as her sister. The year starts fiercely with hazing rituals. Justine is a bit withdrawn and shy. She doesn't feel at easy instantly. In contrary to her sister Alexia. Alexia is very happy to be away from their parents and is enjoying every minute of it partying.
Justine slowly tries to get used to college life. Looking for the help of her sister every now and then. And she feels supported by her roommate as well. She's really having a hard time when a particular part of hazing comes up: They all need to eat rabbit kidneys. At first, she refuses. She really doesn't ant to eat meat. She's a vegetarian. But the other students and her sister insist: This is part of the deal. She has to eat the kidneys. So eventually Justine eats it.
Justine feels terrible and throws up. But that's not the end of it. She develops a terrible rash. But even that is not the only thing. She starts to develop a huge taste for meat. Justine ha no idea what's happening to her and how to handle this.
I really loved watching this movie. It's not often anymore that I get to see a nice horror movie in the cinema. The horror movies I really love are either a bit older already, or don't play in the cinema. So I was really pleased to see Raw. It's a very carefully and well-written story. There's always this suspense. Like I'm wondering what will happen next. Or where I'm asking myself why things are happening. The movie kept me engaged the entire time. (And believe me, that's not so easy!).
I hadn't seen any of the actors before in a movie. And most of them haven't done so many movies yet. This didn't turn out to be a disadvantage. The cast is very strong and the acting is great. I believed them and enjoyed watching the story. I especially liked Ella Rumpf who played Alexia.
After watching it, I wouldn't really classify this as a regular horror movie. Even though there are some pretty horrific scenes in it. But: This isn't the typical horror movie. There's a lot of eye to detail: An elaborate storyline and well-rounded characters. I loved getting to know Justine and Alexia. The horrific scenes are very well made and convincing. I'm pretty used to guts all over the place, but the scenes in this movie were of a whole other level. It's original and surprising. And that's why I definitely recommend this movie! You have to love some gore with the combination of an in depth story and focus on the main characters. And if that idea sounds good to you, you'll love this movie.
Write a comment