Saltburn 2023

Non spoiler thoughts (summary): The cinematography does a huge amount of heavy lifting for me here. The dusk and night scenes are beautifully lit, there is a rich, melancholic atmosphere in the framing that I genuinely love. What keeps me at a distance is everything else. I get the appeal of the rich people are strange angle, but I still do not connect with Barry Keoghan’s performance style. I can admire the craft and the commitment to the tone, but emotionally and narratively, it feels so predictable. ⚠️ Spoilers ahead. From here on, plot details are discussed. Read on if you’ve seen the film. If not, save this post and come back after. ⚠️ Beautifully lit especially during dusk and night scenes. Linus Sandgren is the man. The cinematography alone already carries so much of the experience for me. The soft dusk and evening light make Saltburn look gorgeous. I would honestly give one star just for the cinematography. During the funeral scenes he even goes full Wuthering Heights mode. The framing and mood feel very gothic and melancholic. Rich people are weird. They have completely different interests and ways of entertaining themselves. The film really leans into that strange world where privilege allows people to behave in ways that feel almost alien. Another reason for me to dislike Barry Keoghan. His acting still feels dry to me here. I know a lot of people praise him, but personally I still do not connect with his performance style. The grave scene was ridiculously funny in a disturbing way. When he started having sex with the soil of the grave I honestly thought what the hell am I watching. It felt like a full mental breakdown but played in such an absurd way that I could not help but laugh. At its core this is another eat the rich kind of story. But the plot felt very predictable to me. I already suspected what was happening early on. I will give another half star though because Emerald Fennell eventually confirms those suspicions with that montage showing all the manipulations he did to get Saltburn. At least the film commits to revealing the whole scheme in the end.