God’s Creatures is the new psychological thriller film that stars Normal People’s Paul Mescal. The tense new trailer has just been released so here’s everything you need to know about it.
In the world of psychological thrillers, nothing sends chills down the spine quite like a film or series that is based on a real-life situation.
Take The Capture, Men or Red Rose. It’s part of the reason why we’re looking forward to the deeply creepy The School For Good Mothers, a dystopian take on the pressure placed on parents, and why Come As You Are, a dark take on social media, will be all too familiar to those of us who spend our lives scrolling.
Upcoming film God’s Creatures takes a relatable mother-son relationship and poses the question: how far would you go to protect your loved one, even if it means compromising your own morals in the process?
It comes from independent filmmakers A24 (the same team behind Moonlight, Uncut Gems and Everything Everywhere All At Once) so we know it’s going to be the kind of thought-provoking masterpiece we’ve come to expect from the company.
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God’s Creatures unfolds in a rural Irish fishing village that is rocked when a serious accusation is levelled at Brian, played by Normal People’s Paul Mescal. The role is just another meaty film role for Mescal, who is also leading the cast of Cannes Film Festival favourite Aftersun. In this film, however, Mescal stars as beloved son of Aileen O’Hara (Emily Watson) and is someone who can do no wrong in his mother’s eyes.
That is until a lie she tells for him rips apart their family and close-knit community. Suddenly, her sense of right and wrong is skewed by her own perception of her prodigal son and makes for a tense, emotional epic of a film.
Judging by the new trailer, it’s set to be one of the most talked-about releases of the year, not least because the short snippet leaves a lot to the imagination. It opens with Sarah (played by Game Of Thrones’ Aisling Franciosi) commenting on the harsh winds of their town and saying: “I suppose every house around here has the same ghosts.”
Perhaps foreshadowing that everything is not exactly as it seems, we’re introduced to Aileen and Brian, as he returns home unexpectedly, seemingly after a long time away. Sarah’s own friends remark about how “different” he seems. Others say he’s “grown into himself” but conversations about long ago tensions point to a wider issue with Brian.
That sinister feeling grows when a police officer knocks on Aileen’s door enquiring about Brian’s whereabouts. “There’s been a claim made by a young woman,” he says. “Brian says he was at home with you that night. Is that right?”
“He was, yeah,” Aileen says, but the cutaway shots of Brian smoking outside a bar reveal an alternate truth. “We both know that’s a lie though,” Sarah tells her afterwards.
Although we never learn what the accusation is in the trailer, it’s enough to prompt Sarah to tearfully question: “You don’t want to hear her side?” Another family member also reflects on the “usual family traits” of the O’Hara’s and “boys being boys”.
As well as reckoning with her own lie, Aileen must also face up to the image she’s created of Brian and whether – guilty or not – it is accurate or idealised. The film, which is directed by Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer (The Fits), debuted at this year’s Cannes Film Festival to stellar reviews.
Mescal is referred to as “quietly chilling” and the film has already been dubbed as “an affecting, clear-eyed masterpiece”. God’s Creatures looks like just the kind of psychological thriller that will linger with viewers long after watching, and we simply cannot wait.
God’s Creatures will be released in cinemas on 30 September.
Images: A24; Getty
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