My 21st film of the month is Sissy, a movie that I’ve had in my Shudder queue for what seems like ages. I’m pretty sure I put it in there because I saw some positive posts about it on social media. I don’t think I saw the trailer for this one. If I did, I might not have watched it. I may have assumed that the “influencer” slasher thing wouldn’t be for me. I mean, I didn’t really like Tragedy Girls and that’s my frame of reference for this type of movie. But, since I am looking to watch at least 31 new-to-me movies in October, it’s a good time to clean out my queues. As you may have guessed, I chose this one. Let’s get into it, shall we?
Cecilia is a wellness influencer whose followers watch her content for self-affirmation and mindfulness exercises. She runs into her old grade school “best mate”, Emma, one day. Emma invites her to her bachelorette party weekend at a friend’s villa in the country. Cecilia agrees but asks that Emma not call her by her childhood nickname, Sissy. Of course, she agrees and the two are soon headed to the country along with Emma’s fiancee and two of her friends. They arrive after a bit of trouble on the road and everyone piles out and gets straight to partying. Everyone except Cecilia that is. She lagged behind slightly and got shut out. No worries, she finds a way in and awkwardly says hi to the group. That’s when she learns that her grade school bully, Alex, is the owner of the place. Awkward dynamics and cryptic references to the large scar on Alex’s face simmer until boiling over into violence.
I really like this film’s spin on the familiar slasher story. It’s fresh and engaging. The characters are written well as familiar – bordering on stereotypical – Gen Z (or maybe younger Millennial) young adults. The kills are okay too. The trouble is that for several of the kills, characters behave in unnatural ways. The set-ups are mostly very contrived and require too much suspension of disbelief. It wouldn’t be that egregious if it were just a single instance in a film, but there are a few here. Even that wouldn’t be a dealbreaker if there was fun to be had elsewhere. Unfortunately, there is not much of that to speak of. And I found myself wondering what the score/soundtrack was trying to achieve at several points. Some songs were just bad and some of the score seemed intrusive. I read that the filmmakers wanted to mix influencer style pop (?) with a jarring score. I guess they succeeded in that to the detriment of my enjoyment. Without spoiling anything, I will vaguely say that I was disappointed with a character’s arc and its implication that mental illness was bubbling just beneath the surface all along. (or maybe i interpreted that incorrectly. i don’t know for sure) And the way the story wraps up may not be everyone’s cup of tea. I certainly didn’t appreciate the ending/epilogue. Overall, this one has an interesting premise and some good characterization but nothing especially groundbreaking to offer.
The Final Cut: Sissy is a fresh spin on the familiar slasher film framework but ultimately its weak writing and polarizing finale may fail to engage the emotions of the audience.
No Real Danger 