Watching Hollywood bombshell Scarlett Johansson wandering the streets of Glasgow in amongst the locals, passing familiar shops like Primark, is about an alien an image as you can probably conjure up... and yet that's what makes Under The Skin, by far the strangest and most cerebral movie to have hit cinemas this year, so damn unforgettable. It's safe to say that - as was the case with the book on which it was based - this hallucinatory tale, which features Johansson as an extra terrestrial who stalks men in Scotland, is one of a kind. Under The Skin is best seen knowing as little as possible about the plot - watching Johansson go about her bizarre mission (which she does whilst driving an old black van) is never anything but mesmerising, though it's probably true to say that Jonathan Glazer film isn't an easy one - both haunting and draining, you get back what you put in. Best known for his music videos, Glazer helms this adaptation beautifully; there are images here that will stay with you long after the credits have rolled. At the centre is Johansson - ethereal, vivid, at the height of her powers.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
