Alex Garland’s ‘Men’ first reactions: “Even weirder than ‘Annihilation'”

If one actor plays multiple roles in a film, that film is usually a comedy, as the technique is often viewed as an excuse for someone to show off their “wacky” versatility. That technique, however, and the presumption of how it’s applied is radically turned on its head in writer/director Alex Garland’s new surreal and discomfiting horror film, “Men,” from A24.

Note: This interview contains minor spoilers for “Men.”Jessie Buckley didn’t come away from starring in “Men” with any answers. To her, pinning down the film’s exact meaning would be beside the point.“I don’t really have a singular meaning to it,” the Irish actor and singer admitted in a recent interview with TheWrap.

Michael Fassbender and Alicia Vikander rarely are seen together on the red carpet, but tonight was an exception!

“Men.”The filmmaker unfolds a twisted, trauma-filled narrative with Academy Award nominee Jessie Buckley’s Harper at its dead center. Following the unimaginably painful death of her husband (“I May Destroy You’s” Paapa Essiedu), the young woman seeks refuge in the serene English countryside to grieve and heal.

Men (★★★☆☆) doesn’t aim for perfect clarity in its nightmarish vision of a woman alone in a country house being stalked by strangers. The movie doesn’t demand to be concisely understood or interpreted.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for “Men”The films of writer-director Alex Garland – including 2014’s “Ex Machina” and 2018’s “Annihilation” – are known for their sci-fi horror premises, unusual settings and, above all, mind-bending finales. His third film “Men” elevates those trademarks to a new level, especially its gory, perplexing ending. The nightmare begins when Harper (Jessie Buckley) rents a house in the English countryside, craving a respite from the city where her husband tragically died.

Wilson Chapman editorSpoiler alert: Do not read if you haven’t watched “Men,” now in theaters.In the new A24 horror film “Men,” Rory Kinnear plays the title character — or more accurately, characters. Kinnear portrays a parade of male characters that populate a secluded English village — from a mild-mannered country house owner to a rude teenage boy to a predatory vicar to “the Green Man,” a figure of pagan mythology brought to life.As Jessie Buckley’s Harper, holidaying in the country after the traumatic death of her abusive husband James (Paapa Essiedu), encounters these figures, the interactions escalate to become more and more dangerous, until she finds herself trapped in her house fighting for her life.

K.J. Yossman Paapa Essiedu has appeared in fare as varied as Michaela Coel’s critically acclaimed drama “I May Destroy You” and crime series “Gangs of London” but his latest turn, as James in Alex Garland’s latest feature “Men,” may be his most unusual role yet.

“Growing up, I was desperate for any sort of connection with people like me. It was the first time I really felt seen.

Alex Garland is behind some fantastic and acclaimed genre projects such as “Ex Machina,” his tech-thriller FX series “DEVS,” and the recent project “Men” starring Jessie Buckley and Rory Kinnear. He originally made the jump from author to screenwriter and then made another pivot to directing but doesn’t see himself as a director and might not be doing it for much longer.

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It wasn’t Jessie Buckley’s audition but an observation she made that got her the leading role in “ Men.”When speaking to filmmaker Alex Garland about his heady idea to grapple with masculinity and its foundational myths and virulent cycles within a folk horror construct, Buckley caught him off guard: She started talking about the metallic taste of blood and how the character might feel about it. It was strange and unusual and perfect, he thought.“It was quite an abstract way of thinking.

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Never Let Me Go, the Kazuo Ishiguro novel that was adapted as a film starring Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley and Andrew Garfield, is being adapted as a TV series.

out there.Whatever’s happening in the movie’s opening fragments of unnerving imagery — sparks hitting a waterfront apartment’s railing, an eerie orange glow, the nosebleed on a terrified-looking Harper (Buckley) — we know it’s why our protagonist is next seen driving her Ford Fiesta to the English countryside as singer-songwriter Leslie Duncan’s plaintive classic “Love Song” accompanies the rolling, tranquil scenery. Arriving at her cozy, stately vacation-rental manor tucked inside a hedged boundary, Harper plucks an apple from the tree out front and bites.

The trailer for “Men” is simple; a little too simple. Like scores of horror characters before her, we see that Jessie Buckley has relocated to the countryside in order to get away from the horrors of her real life.

Peter Debruge Chief Film CriticSPOILER ALERT: The following review contains spoilers.In “Ex Machina” director Alex Garland’s latest, “Men,” the leaves are so green, the tone is so ominous, and the men are so … Rory Kinnear-y that audiences are all but guaranteed to leave this folk-horror bizart-house offering feeling disturbed, even if no two viewers can agree on what bothered them about it. There’s that shocker of an ending, of course, but we’ll postpone discussion of that till the penultimate paragraph of this review, so as not to spoil the fun — even if, by the time you see it, “Men” is already likely to be defined by its over-the-top finale.Kinnear, who comes across as a chummy enough fellow — albeit one who might chase you into a back alley and murder you if given the chance — impressively embodies eight different characters: basically, all the men, plus one particularly creepy boy, in a rural English village.

Men writer/director Alex Garland is fascinated with creation and rebirth. His first film Ex Machina focuses on creationism and oppression, his second film Annihilation deals with creation, recreation and the impending apocalypse, while his newest film deals with guilt, trauma and rebirth. This is Garland’s most emotional and abstract work (yes, it’s even abstract by Alex Garland standard), and also his weakest. Not because of the themes or any technical aspects, but because it’s a frustratingly vague piece of work. This extreme level of ambiguity weakens an otherwise haunting thriller about dealing with Post traumatic stress. 

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness” has officially concluded its world premiere and the first reactions for the new entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe are pouring in online, with film journalists calling the long-awaited sequel everything from a film that “fully goes horror” to “a mixed bag.” One thing almost everyone seems to agree on is that it’s nice to see Sam Raimi back in the director’s chair.Benedict Cumberbatch reprises the title role in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” which is helmed by Raimi. The film picks up after the events of “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” in which Stephen Strange changed the face of reality by opening up the multiverse.

Jessie Buckley is kicking off the promo tour for her upcoming A24 movie Men!