The Front Room (2024)
September 8, 2024 12:05 PM - Subscribe
[TRAILER] Everything goes to hell for newly-pregnant Belinda (Brandy Norwood) after her mother-in-law (Kathryn Hunter) moves in. As the diabolical guest tries to get her claws on the child, Belinda must draw the line somewhere.
Also starring Andrew Burnap, Neal Huff, David Manis, Mary Catherine Wright, Ellen J. Maddow, Mary Testa.
Written and directed by Max Eggers & Sam Eggers (whose brother Robert made The VVitch and The Lighthouse, which Max co-wrote), based on a story by Susan Hill. Produced by Julia Oh, David Hinojosa, Lucan Toh, Babak Anvari, Bryan Sonderman. Edited by Ben Rodriguez Jr., Ben Kissack. Cinematography by Ava Berkofsky. Music by Marcelo Zarvos.
51% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
Now playing in US theaters. JustWatch listing.
Also starring Andrew Burnap, Neal Huff, David Manis, Mary Catherine Wright, Ellen J. Maddow, Mary Testa.
Written and directed by Max Eggers & Sam Eggers (whose brother Robert made The VVitch and The Lighthouse, which Max co-wrote), based on a story by Susan Hill. Produced by Julia Oh, David Hinojosa, Lucan Toh, Babak Anvari, Bryan Sonderman. Edited by Ben Rodriguez Jr., Ben Kissack. Cinematography by Ava Berkofsky. Music by Marcelo Zarvos.
51% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
Now playing in US theaters. JustWatch listing.
DOT, thanks for that description, I think I may be one of those people!
posted by supermedusa at 11:02 AM on September 9
posted by supermedusa at 11:02 AM on September 9
God bless you, DOT. Now I have to assemble the right group of people for this.
posted by queensissy at 3:39 PM on September 9
posted by queensissy at 3:39 PM on September 9
There are definitely critics who hate this.
To Quote One of the Main Characters, 'The Front Room' Is an Em-Ee-Ess-Ess Mess
I Can't Stop Thinking About The Worst Movie I've Seen In 2024
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:43 PM on September 11 [1 favorite]
To Quote One of the Main Characters, 'The Front Room' Is an Em-Ee-Ess-Ess Mess
I Can't Stop Thinking About The Worst Movie I've Seen In 2024
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:43 PM on September 11 [1 favorite]
I land closer to these:
A scrappy, effective, and fun late-summer genre exercise that is sure to find a cult following when it hits streaming. But why wait?
THE FRONT ROOM is an audacious debut from the Eggers Brothers. While it struggles to find a steady footing and doesn’t hit every note it aims for, credit must be given where it’s due - they really swing for the fences.
This movie is a hoot if you key in to the fact that its actual genre isn’t arthouse but Grand Dame Guignol. It’s like if Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? was about a younger woman taking care of Bette Davis ... It’s camp.
Newton’s simply too undeniable in her role, coupled with the film’s striking composition.
Even with imperfect character (and thematic) beats, The Front Room remains an impressive feature directorial debut from The Eggers Brothers.
The Front Room perhaps leans more toward the repulsive than the highbrow, potentially carving out its own distinct genre niche.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:52 PM on September 11
A scrappy, effective, and fun late-summer genre exercise that is sure to find a cult following when it hits streaming. But why wait?
THE FRONT ROOM is an audacious debut from the Eggers Brothers. While it struggles to find a steady footing and doesn’t hit every note it aims for, credit must be given where it’s due - they really swing for the fences.
This movie is a hoot if you key in to the fact that its actual genre isn’t arthouse but Grand Dame Guignol. It’s like if Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? was about a younger woman taking care of Bette Davis ... It’s camp.
Newton’s simply too undeniable in her role, coupled with the film’s striking composition.
Even with imperfect character (and thematic) beats, The Front Room remains an impressive feature directorial debut from The Eggers Brothers.
The Front Room perhaps leans more toward the repulsive than the highbrow, potentially carving out its own distinct genre niche.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 6:52 PM on September 11
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If you are simultaneously someone who has enjoyed A24 horror productions, but you are also someone who has invited friends over, made popcorn, and ordered pizza because a new TV movie sounds particularly fucking unhinged, this is for you. If you have howled your entire way through films like Mommy Dearest or Flowers in the Attic, this is for you.
It's essentially in the style of the lurid, trashy, campy family melodrama that presents as horror, from any era really, but especially from say 1973-1988. This sensibility has been distilled, recaptured, and shined up for 2024 by the Eggers Brothers, who are the siblings of A24 auteur Robert Eggers (Nosferatu, The Northman) and they know exactly what they are doing here.
Most people, I believe, will truly hate this or at best, shrug. If you saw yourself in the descriptions above though, this is gonna be a total fucking blast for you. Go to the theater right now. Bring friends, buy lots of snacks, drinks if they serve them.
I found it positively a hoot, from Brandy's pitch-perfect "Is this shit for real?" straight man performance to Kathryn Hunter's epically, hilariously malevolent villain turn, to the weird ass theremin score, to diarrhea as a method of passive aggressive torture. Just 100 minutes of pure enjoyment.
Emphatically not for everyone. Sure as hell was for me, though.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:13 PM on September 8 [7 favorites]