Saint Maud is a British psychological horror film directed by Rose Glass. The plot sees clearly unhinged Maud (Morfydd Clark), begin caring for faded American movie star Amanda (Jennifer Ehle). As she is performing her duties as a private care nurse she can’t shake the feeling that she was made for more and that God is communicating through her or to her in some way. As her ‘connection’ with some form of higher being intensifies so does the horror.
I would say that this film is going to be very stark with viewers, you will either love it or you will hate it. That said however, I find myself somewhere in the middle. Though I think the premise and the story is well told and intriguing, I think structurally and as a horror film it is disappointing.
So, this is very much like Robert Egger’s The Witch, use your enjoyment of that film as a barometer for this. By that I mean it is incredibly slow, it builds and builds itself over time and then explodes in the final ten minutes into an all-out wild spectacle. I found myself bored by it for the majority and then these last ten minutes scared me and made me take notice.
I think the concept is interesting, the idea of is Maud really communing with some kind of higher power/ demon or is she just losing her mind has been done before, but never in as much detail as this. The film never gives you a definitive answer one way or the other it is entirely on you to decide. I enjoyed this aspect of it.
Overall, your enjoyment of this will come down to your horror sensibilities. I saw people leaving my screening mid film. I enjoyed what it was trying to do, however I found it to be a disappointment ultimately.
Pros.
The ending
The showdown, you know what I mean
The premise and the interesting plot
Cons.
It is not scary
It is very slow
3/5
Reviewed by Luke
Another Millennial Reviewer 