Written and directed by Jack James, Malady is an atmospheric, minimalist psychosexual exploration of loneliness, cruelty, obsession, and the inability to connect with other people. It’s incredibly disturbing, but it’s also a very haunting arthouse horror film that will leave you shaken and breathless.
We begin with Holly (Roxy Bugler), whose mother has just died. Lonely, she hooks up with Matthew (Kemal Yildirim), a man who’s just as isolated as she is. We can see that there’s something off about Matthew from the beginning, but we’re not exactly sure what. Something has happened to make him estranged from his family. He’s also not much of a talker and he has a habit of playing with a lock of his sister’s hair that he keeps in a little wooden box. Shortly after Holly and Matthew begin dating, Matthew’s mother becomes seriously ill, and the two go to visit her. Turns out she’s a cruel, narcissistic sadist who’s obsessed with her son. We’re stuck in this strange house for the rest of the movie while things get very, very dark for everyone involved.
The cinematography is gorgeous as hell. Nice use of reds and oranges throughout. The colors are intense, but not overwhelming. It makes for a very symbolic film where the characters’ emotions are always on unconscious display, since they’re incapable of being honest with themselves or other people. The movie is very well put together, technically. James even pulls off artsy sex scenes that don’t make you cringe, which is quite an accomplishment, actually.
Malady isn’t a plot-driven movie. A little patience might be required, especially for horror fans who are used to films that hit plot points in predictable succession. The film is all about sensory experience. It’s an exploration of the characters’ psychology, which is unpredictable at best. For instance, there seems to be an almost innocent sincerity about Holly, but we find out eventually that she’s capable of reaching into some very bleak parts of her psyche. And while Matthew is distant and sometimes cruel, he’s also a very vulnerable and sad person. Malady is all about the psychological twists that keep you wondering who these people really are.
If there’s an underlying theme, it’s distance. Matthew won’t tell Holly anything about what happened with his family. Holly can’t seem to connect with anyone, even though she tries desperately. Sex is a very twisted, distorting thing here. It’s used in place of communication, as a substitute for the things that the characters want to avoid. There’s plenty of sex in Malady, but absolutely no intimacy.
The performances are all wonderful here. Very subdued, perfect for the atmosphere James creates. Jill Connick, who plays Matthew’s mother, must have had a tough time getting into such a rough, mean, bitter character. She’s a force, certainly. It would have been incredibly easy for such an evil character to become a caricature in the wrong hands. Actually, everyone seems to have had to reach into some pretty dark places for their roles. Whatever they had to do, it worked, and the movie is so much better for it.
There’s a lot to love about this movie, though you have to be ready to go for some psychologically disturbing stuff, which for me is always more affecting than jump scares or gore. Along with A Dark Song, this is one of the best horror films of 2017.
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