The Reflecting Skin (1990)

In the 1950's, a young boy living with his troublesome family in rural USA fantasizes that a neighboring widow is actually a vampire, responsible for a number of disappearances in the area.

Director:

Philip Ridley

Writer:

Philip Ridley

Stars:

Viggo Mortensen, Lindsay Duncan, Jeremy Cooper

6 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Viggo Mortensen	...	Cameron Dove
Lindsay Duncan	...	Dolphin Blue
Jeremy Cooper	...	Seth Dove
Sheila Moore	...	Ruth Dove
Duncan Fraser	...	Luke Dove
David Longworth	...	Joshua
Robert Koons	...	Sheriff Ticker
David Bloom	...	Deputy
Evan Hall	...	Kim
Codie Lucas Wilbee	...	Eben
Sherry Bie	...	Cassie
Jason Wolff	...	Cadillac Driver (as Jason Wolfe)
Dean Hass	...	Passenger
Guy Buller	...	Passenger
Jason Brownlow	...	Passenger

Storyline

A young boy tries to cope with rural life circa 1950s and his fantasies become a way to interpret events. After his father tells him stories of vampires, he becomes convinced that the widow up the road is a vampire, and tries to find ways of discouraging his brother from seeing her. He must deal with an abusive mother, a father with a charge of molestation, a band of youths creating havoc, and an unforgiving environment in general.

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Plot Keywords:

1950s | united states | usa | united states of america | rural america | 

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Taglines:

Sometimes terrible things happen quite naturally

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for intense violent behavior, and for sensuality

Details

Country:

UK Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 November 1990 (UK)

Also Known As:

Det gyllene fältet

Filming Locations:

Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

British Screen Productions, BBC Films, Zenith Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min 115 min (Ontario)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Philip Ridley stated that he hand painted all the wheat yellow because he preferred the look of it

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Quotes

Seth Dove: I keep the angel.

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Connections

Referenced in Ancient Evil 2: Guardian of the Underworld (2005)

User Reviews

American Gothic

British playwright, author and scriptwriter Phillip Ridley turned his hand to directing for this beautifully beguiling film about a child's view of a bewilderingly complex world. The protagonist-Seth-is confronted by the horrors of mortality when he meets the mysterious "vampire", Dolphin Blue, a lonely widow he encounters when he and his friends explode a frog in front of her. The film follows Seth through his deepening understanding of the fragility of existence.

A highly evocative and stylised tale of small town life and death set amidst swaying corn fields and clear blue skies, but, there is a foetus in the barn and death drives a black car through town... Not for all tastes, this is a poetic piece of Americana that will probably appeal to fans of David Lynch. Ridley's vision is not a cheery world view but one in which cruelty and fate stalk the innocent hand in hand. This is a beautiful and tragic piece of work and I just wish there would be a DVD release soon