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

The industrial/experimental band Coil used the line "you've been exploding frogs again" on their album « Stolen and Contaminated Songs » (1992).

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Quotes

Cameron Dove: [to Seth, who is staring at him] What are you lookin' at?
Seth Dove: Nothin'.
Cameron Dove: Doesn't look like nothin'.

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Connections

Featured in Screen Two: The Reflecting Skin (1994)

User Reviews

Great movie. Unusual atmosphere

Really a good film. Definitely worth finding. I guess the only place you can score "The Reflecting Skin" is ebay, but I would recommend shelling out the few extra bucks. It's worth it. It would spoil the film to give away too much. And director Philip Ridley interweaves everything together masterfully. I mean MASTERFULLY. When you watch it you'll know what I mean.

Young Seth lives in rural America at the end of WWII. Kids are getting killed in the town. Seth and his friends are convinced his creepy neighbor lady who always wears sunglasses and is pale and British, is the culprit (and that she's a vampire). Seth's brother (played by a young Viggo Mortenson) comes home from the war and promptly falls in love with the neighbor lady. Of course, this horrifies Seth. And stuff even starts to happen to his brother to confirm his suspicions. But there's a reason. You probably shouldn't know more. There are a couple of different plot threads. They are all haunting. Especially the backstory involving Mortenson, which I found chilling. One monologue to the British lady about his experiences in the war he tells with absolute innocence (when you see it you understand, given the time period) is blood-curdling.

The scenery/cinematography is amazing. Lot of remarkable imagery. Stuffs that REALLY sticks in your mind. Not just the images of little kids bounding through wheat fields (which there are plenty of) but the way the houses seem utterly rooted into the landscape. The way the whole atmosphere has a strange, haunted feeling. Great stuff. Highly recommended. Nothing TOO terribly frightening, but LOTS of creepiness. Actually, the whole film is just plain creepy.