Under the Skin is, quite frankly, one of the strangest movies ever made. The premise is deceivingly simple: an alien, who has taken the form of a human woman and is played by Scarlett Johansson, stalks the Scottish countryside, praying on hitchhikers. When she manages to seduce one, she takes them back to an isolated location and... well, to say more of her intentions is to spoil the weird, disturbing nature of the film. Jonathan Glazer, famous for his music videos, directs this slow and purposely meandering sci-fi venture - one that thrives on its ability to appear "real" (indeed, non-professional actors were cast in some of the roles). Haunting, unnerving and - in places - genuinely uncomfortable to watch, Under the Skin is better seen than written about; in all of cinema, there's nothing comparable. Which is the best thing about it.
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.
