‘Superior’ is a drama centering on twin sisters Marian and Vivian, who are reunited as Marian goes on the run and returns to her home town. Hiding out at their childhood home, Marian seeks refuge with Vivian and the two reconnect after 6 years apart. As Marian’s temporary stay turns into a more permanent affair, the twins begin to encroach on each others personal lives, leading to a life altering change.
The film opens by showing Marian as she escapes Robert, her abusive husband. The following day she is shown to turn up at Vivian’s home, much to her and her husbands surprise as the two hadn’t been in touch for over half a decade. Always managing to avoid talking about where she has been, Vivian encourages Marian to spend her time more constructively and asks her to contribute if she’s to stay with her for the foreseeable future, so Marian gets a job at a local ice cream parlour.
One day, Marian asks Vivian to trade places with her, as she wants to work on her music. Vivian agrees and the two spend a few days being each other. Soon after, Marian calls the authorities to follow up on where Robert is, as she fears him tracking her back home. It turns out that Robert had in fact managed to track her, but unbeknownst to him, he actually encounters Vivian disguised as Marian. Robert drugs Vivian and takes her to his place. Marian tracks them down and switches places with Vivian, ultimately leading to an altercation with Robert where Marian takes revenge and stabs him. The film closes on the two sisters driving home in silence.
‘Superior’ is a quiet and atmospheric drama. Through a violent and tense opening sequence, the film sets an underlying tone of unrelenting unease and anxiety that follows Marian around till the closing act of the film. Despite Marian’s mysterious past, we are also invited into Vivian’s world, - to explore her sensibilities, her concerns and ultimately to realise her disappointment in herself as she ponders her unexplored potential.
The two sisters ultimately end up using each other. Initially Marian successfully uses her sisters identity to hide out, to work on her music and to create a sense of safety for herself. At the same time Vivian has fun pretending to be Marian, not weighed down by her daily duties and able to think on what she wants to do with herself in the future. The two are shown to enjoy their freedom as they pretend to be the other, yet ultimately realise that there are changes they want to and must make to become better versions of themselves going forward.
The movie evokes a very specific time, a bygone era that may have seemed simpler in a way. With a visual style that screams retro, the movie showcases a slew of fantastic colour palettes through bold stylistic choices in the wardrobe department, whilst at the same time setting the magnificent outfits to more bland sets and backgrounds, allowing for the characters to stand out even more.
The film also makes use of fever-dream like sequences to evoke the severity of the fear that looms over Marian because of Robert. The sequences show us how Marian is trying to reconcile her difficult feelings towards her husband, as she remembers the intimacy they share whilst contrasting to her fear of his violent and abusive tendencies. The sequences are peppered throughout the film and appear at unexpected times, helping the audience understand the unrelenting and haunting nature of Marian’s past.
The cast of the film comprises of Alessandra Mesa as Marian and Ani Mesa as Vivian, with the two identical twins leading the film. Unsurprisingly, the two sisters are a natural fit on screen and create an atmosphere with deep underlying tensions and unspoken exchanges that immediately invites questions about their past and intrigues the viewer as to the inevitable exchange that will reveal the deep seeded grudges and painful memories. Ultimately, it is through spending time apart that allows for each character to look within and to develop ideas about what to do in terms of personal development and Both sisters work wonderfully apart to express their characters individuality on screen.
‘Superior’ is a quiet film that very much plays to toned down scenes and unspoken exchanges to illustrate and convey each characters emotions. The pacing of the film may seem sluggish at times, infrequently broken up by the fever-dream like sequences of Marian being haunted by Robert, yet at it’s worst the film still delivers a poignant story about identity, self-discovery and ultimately – change. Maybe not the most thrilling or surprising, ‘Superior’ leans into its stylistic strengths and strong performances from its leads, delivering a reserved yet intriguing story.
Score: 3/4
コメント