Director Joe Lynch’s new film Suitable Flesh takes a little bit of time before its tone and style fully take shape, which could make audiences recoil in the early moments. However, fans of Re-animator will likely be stoked to find the film opens in a morgue, with Barbara Crampton’s character, Dr. Dani Upton, looking into a body bag and commenting on the remains. Then, audiences may discover that this film’s writer – Dennis Paoli – also wrote Re-animator, and this is another H.P. Lovecraft-inspired story.
As Dr. Upton leaves the morgue and the commercial mortician, she grabs two orderlies, looks through the window of a door before unlocking it, and walks into a padded room. There, Dr. Elizabeth Derby (Heather Graham) rants and raves, inquiring about the status of the remains of the victim in the body bag. As Dr. Upton is able to settle her down, Elizabeth begins telling the doctor (and the audience) exactly how she got there.
It’s in these early scenes where the dialogue feels a little generic, and almost ripped out of a Lifetime original movie. Graham delivers stilted dialogue to her husband (Johnathon Schaech) and to her patients. It’s when Judah Lewis shows up in her office that things start to click – and get really, really weird. He makes a claim of having gone through an out-of-body experience, which is a topic Dr. Derby wrote a book on. Of course, her psychology book was referring to a schizophrenic episode, but Judah seems to be implying something far more sinister.
The film truly clicks because of Lynch’s direction and style. Much of the production and set design feels like something you’d see on Lifetime or Hallmark – especially Dr. Derby’s office and house. Mix that with the dialogue, and the film initially feels like a bad, low-budget horror. Then, those moments start to make more sense contextually as the film gets more and more wild. Lynch and his team utilize some very cool transitions, camera effects, and practical effects to make the movie feel equal parts fun, scary, and wild. All of the performances really come into their own over the course of the film, so by the end, everything is quite cohesive.
Suitable Flesh isn’t made for the whole family, of course. There is a lot of sexuality built into the story, and some of the imagery might be too gruesome for some audiences. However, fans of films like Re-animator or House (1985) may find they are also a fan of this. There were a few moments early on when I didn’t think the film would work for me. However, as the story progressed and the actors were really challenged to mix up their performances, I found myself being pulled in.
Suitable Flesh will be available in theaters and on VOD on October 27.
Rating: Not Quite Golden, Ponyboy
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