Saltburn

Saltburn

Struggling to find his place at Oxford University, student Oliver Quick finds himself drawn into the world of the charming and aristocratic Felix Catton, who invites him to Saltburn, his eccentric family's sprawling estate, for a summer never to be forgotten.

  • Released:
  • Runtime: 131 minutes
  • Genre: Comedy, Drama, Thrillers
  • Stars: Tasha Lim, Glyn Grimstead, Rosamund Pike, Barry Keoghan, Jacob Elordi, Richard E. Grant, Carey Mulligan, Alison Oliver, Archie Madekwe, Sadie Soverall, Paul Rhys, Reece Shearsmith, Ewan Mitchell, Matthew Carver, Dorothy Atkinson, Shaun Dooley, Tomás Barry, Richard Cotterell, Lolly Adefope, Andy Brady
  • Director: Emerald Fennell
 Comments
  • frankrusso-30516 - 27 June 2024
    Great twist
    It was a great drama brimming with queer energy throughout, while also having a seething underbelly that is exposed in the end. Although the story is played in a way that keeps you guessing until the very end.

    The Acting was superb. Barry Keoghan deserves a lot of praise for the way he handled his character and the insight into who his character was.

    All the rest of the actors played their roles beautifully, another shout out to Archie Madekwe who plays a character that is a total prat, but knows how to spot other prats....

    The scenery was breathtaking, without the story, it would be a great vacation destination if you like beautiful country estates and colleges that nurture the environment around them.
  • platinum_daisies - 7 June 2024
    Overrated, could've been something awesome
    Loved the first half of the movie, as it moved at a slow but comfortable place and showcased the beautiful setting and lifestyle of the rich very well. Jacob Elordi shines in his role, as I haven't really been a fan of the usual characters he plays but I found him pretty likable in this film. Barry Keoghan is his typical creepy self. Rosamund Pike was very good too. Overall, the acting was pretty fantastic all around. However, several glaring issues. Firstly, this movie has been done before, as many have mentioned, and better. The Talented Mr. Ripley and Parasite both exist and allegedly do a better job showcasing the ugly side of the rich than this film. This film, perhaps unintentionally (?) had me siding with the rich family over Barry every step of the way. Honestly, the other characters were far more unlikeable than the rich family. The nasty scenes were just that, nasty. Cheap, shock value stuff. I'm also concerned that Barry apparently improvised them, particularly the grave scene. Is he okay? Because I'm not. Not after watching that. It somehow felt outrageous and boring at the same time though. Not quite groundbreaking in its shock value, just low-hanging fruit. Also, the ending is just totally unbelievable, sorry. There is no way that Rosamund would, after the death of her immediate family, would just GIVE AWAY her entire familial estate to BARRY THE CREEP just because he comforted her when she was sad. Insane. She would've given it to other relatives, life-long friends, about a thousand people before Barry, I'm sure.
  • mark-67214-52993 - 28 April 2024
    Class Warfare That's Not a Fair Fight
    "Saltburn" is a remake of 1999's "The Talented Mr. Ripley." In Writer/Director Emerald Fennell's retelling, the "hero" of her film is a truly nasty piece of work.

    Oliver Quick is a scholarship student at Oxford in 2006, not a Dickens character. He yearns to be noticed by the popular students, particularly Felix Catton, a young aristocrat. After Oliver contrives to meet Felix, the two strike up a friendship of sorts, based primarily on Felix's pity for Oliver's situation in life. When Oliver confides to Felix that his father has recently died, Felix insists that Oliver spend the summer at Saltburn, the family estate. Snide observations, assaults on class privilege and the occasional murder ensue.

    The cast is first-rate. As Oliver, Barry Keoshan ("Dunkirk," "The Banshees of Inisherin") is compellingly creepy. Jacobi Elordi ("Euphoria"), in the role of Felix, is so sexy that he seems destined to cause heart palpitations among males, females and probably several species of marine mammals. As Lady Elspeth, Rosamund Pike ("Gone Girl") explores new depths of superficiality, at one point observing, "I've never wanted to know anything." Alison Oliver ("Conversations with Friends") is riveting in a small but crucial role. Unfortunately, Richard E. Grant ("The Lesson") has nothing substantial to do as lord of the manor. In fairness, he does wear armor to a dinner party.

    A crackling script further recommends this film. I was so enthralled by the quips and rapid-fire dialogue that I tracked down a copy of the script online. It's even better than I thought - quick, stylish, smart.

    What offsets these strengths, and ultimately sinks this film, is the lack of substance in what Fennell has created. For a film that's intended to be a takedown of wealth and privilege, the rich people in "Saltburn" are the easiest of targets. Fennell seems to think the upper class distinguishes itself by being more vacuous, more disconnected from the world around them and less self-aware than regular folk. Once the class warfare begins, it's not even a fair fight.

    I came to resent the tone of self-satisfaction that permeates this piece. Fennell seems to believe she is an avant garde provocateur who has crafted a film both shocking and profound. But in the final analysis, there's really nothing new here. If you want a dissection of class and privilege, go see Bong Joon Ho's "Parasite" or TV's "The White Lotus" (either season). Here, Fennell seems to have confused showy for shocking and self-indulgent for cutting-edge. The summary of events at the end of the film is redundant and unnecessary, apparently designed to underline Fennell's genius and the assumption that her audience hasn't been paying attention.

    This film is not nearly as clever as it thinks. Living up to its name, "Saltburn" is just a minor skin irritant.