The prospect of witnessing Scarlett Johansson getting naked in a movie might have been enough for some to head down to the cinema to watch Under the Skin, but those expecting a mainstream science fiction movie were likely to be disappointed. Johansson's performance as the alien seductress prowling the streets of Scotland in a beautiful human body is a far cry from her more action-oriented roles, veering into the territory of experimental cinema. "Experimental" might be a more suitable word than most for Under the Skin, which mixes hidden camera footage of Johansson as she drives around in a van looking for prey (many of the men she speaks to are unwitting members of the public who were asked to sign release forms after they'd been filmed), with incredibly designed and composed alien settings which recall the pure cinema aesthetic of Stanley Kubrick. Director Jonathan Glazer offers no easy answers to the events depicted, leaving the audience to piece together the story of an alien discovering a sense of humanity. As with Locke, this is another example of a huge A-list star taking on a quirky, art house project with fantastic results.
