Clock Review: Dianna Agron Leads Insightful, Uneven Psychological Horror
There's no better time to celebrate . As government officials threaten, and in some cases succeed, to ban female autopsies, the horror of a woman being forced to become a mother couldn't be greater.
Director and screenwriter Alexis Jacknow's The Clock tells the story of Ella (Diana Agro), a successful interior designer who is happily married and content with her childless life. However, Ella and her reasons for not having children are belittled by her friends who have decided to have children, and her Jewish father, Joseph (Saul Rubinek), begs her to continue the family. Society and religion collide, plunging Ella into turmoil and paranoia. Is he wrong? Viewers know Ella isn't guilty, but she succumbs to pressure from her friends, father and society, and enters a cutting-edge clinical trial to rekindle what she believes to be her hidden desire for life. to be a mother.
This movie has a fascinating and touching story about why Ella was stressed. Society assumes that working women are negligent and selfish because they reject motherhood. As a Jewish woman, she feels obligated to pass on the faith because Judaism is maternal. Additionally, Ella's father convinced her of the importance of honoring the lives lost in the Holocaust. The script offers an authentic look at the many stresses of a woman's life as it relates to childbirth, and Jacknow does a great job of showing just how special those challenges are for our hero. These letters are made all the more poignant by the choice of Diana Agron and Saul Rubinek, both Jews, the latter the son of a Holocaust survivor. Their actions carry the weight of the narrative and are deeply felt.
The Clock is a slick horror movie that has all the hallmarks of the genre, but the scares and hallucinations of flight aren't nearly as scary as the obnoxious voices of its supposed friend and the pseudoscientific nonsense that litters the doctor's work. Elizabeth Simmons (Melora Hardy) does not swim. ) Ella talks about the many reasons why a woman might not want children, but the most compelling scene is her explanation of how honoring Holocaust survivors by having children has less to do with them and more to do with the fear of it happening again. will be repeated. . And as xenophobia mounts and government officials vent anti-Semitic sentiments in public forums, Ella's fears are being realized in real time. The Hour is a work of art that combines psychological and physical horror with a heavy dose of reality.
Despite the clear concept, Ella is difficult to capture on film. In more ways than one, she is the hollow avatar of the average working woman who has found success and fulfillment outside of children. She has almost nothing to do outside of a toxic relationship, and her happy marriage only shows in times of stress and anxiety. We don't have time for happy times. The unfinished character work makes Ella hard to root for, but Jacknose's writing effectively exposes the absurdity and horror surrounding a woman's belly, making Ella relatable again.
Agron does a great job here with an empathetic performance that makes us love Ella in a way the script doesn't. She, Rubinecco, and Hardin are solid in their roles, but not enough is done to flesh out Ella's world. Jacknow creates the frenzied explosions of horror you'd expect with a few unexpected twists, and the psychological turmoil is portrayed effectively. However, we miss Ella's gorgeous choices and their effect on her. Since he is barely a fully conscious person, the effects of this experience are not noticeable. When this emotional core is lacking, the Clock swings.
The Watch presents Jacknow as a talent to watch in horror, although the film doesn't quite stick to the plot. Sometimes the concept is taken too far, especially when there isn't enough character work. However, Jacknow manages to put us in a stressful situation. The writer-director of this impressively themed hour would surely be better off basing his stories on characters that respond to their development, rather than just the ideas that make up the character. Although Ella is somewhat hollow, there is enough in the script to draw the audience into her story and sympathize with her plight. Jacknow understands that when reality shows horror, it becomes more terrifying.
It will launch on Hulu on Friday, April 28. It is 91 minutes long and has not yet been rated.