Antlers movie review & film summary (2021)


It feels like it’s been years since we first heard about Cooper’s film, which was scheduled for an April 2020 release and is finally coming out 18 months later. Based on Antosca’s short story The Quiet Boy, “Antlers” takes place in a small town in Oregon, one of those formerly blue-collar communities that has been devastated by economic setbacks and drug addiction. Paul Meadows (Jesse Plemons) is the reticent sheriff of this corner of the world, a place that feels like it was thriving a generation ago and might not exist a generation from now. Paul’s sister Julia (Keri Russell) has returned home to a place that already provoked trauma related to her childhood and now seems like perhaps the gloomiest town on Earth.

Julia has also returned to a teaching job, where she takes an interest in the quiet kid in class, Lucas (Jeremy T. Thomas). He’s one of those boys that seems a little too quiet and skittish, indicating perhaps something is very wrong at home. Julia learns that Lucas’ mother passed not long ago, leaving his father Frank (Scott Haze) to care for him and Lucas’ brother Aiden (Sawyer Jones). Everyone suspects this is a bad home dynamic, but they have no idea. In the very effective, tone-setting opening scene, Frank and a drug-producing colleague are attacked by … something. Since then, he’s been locked in his house, physically coming apart at the seams. He’s almost feral, a cross between a werewolf and a zombie, and Lucas just locks his door at night and hopes dad doesn’t get worse. He will get worse.

Shot by Florian Hoffmeister (a Terence Davies collaborator on “The Deep Blue Sea” and “A Quiet Passion” as well as a vet of AMC’s “The Terror,” which has a similar tone to this project), “Antlers” is a visually confident film. It embraces shadows in a way that makes you lean forward to discern the horror in the dark corner of the room but never to a degree that feels incoherent or frustrating. Cooper and Hoffmeister give the film a striking visual language, and the editing by the great Dylan Tichenor (“There Will Be Blood”) enhances the forced POVs and disconcerting angles even further. 

You can view the original article HERE.

“Anora,” “Shōgun” Win Big with Critics Choice Awards | Festivals & Awards
“Anora,” “Shōgun” Win Big with Critics Choice Awards | Festivals & Awards
Billy Magnussen, Sarah Goldberg to Lead AMC’s Silicon Valley Series
Billy Magnussen, Sarah Goldberg to Lead AMC’s Silicon Valley Series
Sigourney Weaver Reveals She Joined the ‘Mandalorian’ Movie for Grogu
Sigourney Weaver Reveals She Joined the ‘Mandalorian’ Movie for Grogu
Navigating Sundance as a First Timer | Festivals & Awards
Navigating Sundance as a First Timer | Festivals & Awards
Listen to Bdrmm’s “aggressive” new single ‘Lake Disappointment’
Listen to Bdrmm’s “aggressive” new single ‘Lake Disappointment’
Taylor Swift Fans Seethe at Kendrick Lamar Over Halftime Show
Taylor Swift Fans Seethe at Kendrick Lamar Over Halftime Show
Smashing Pumpkins announce massive 2025 London Gunnersbury Park show with Skunk Anansie and White Lies
Smashing Pumpkins announce massive 2025 London Gunnersbury Park show with Skunk Anansie and White Lies
How Rich Is the ‘Not Like Us’ Rapper Ahead of His Super Bowl Performance?
How Rich Is the ‘Not Like Us’ Rapper Ahead of His Super Bowl Performance?
The Hunting Party Season 1 Episode 2 Review: Learning to Trust Amidst a Violent Manhunt
The Hunting Party Season 1 Episode 2 Review: Learning to Trust Amidst a Violent Manhunt
15 Best TV Vampires in Ever Put to Screen
15 Best TV Vampires in Ever Put to Screen
‘The Ascent’ Will Throw a Wedding Party to the Sharks in New Horror Movie
‘The Ascent’ Will Throw a Wedding Party to the Sharks in New Horror Movie
Sweet Magnolias: Joanna Garcia Swisher Shares Why Season 4 Was Her Favorite Season For Maddie
Sweet Magnolias: Joanna Garcia Swisher Shares Why Season 4 Was Her Favorite Season For Maddie
Eagles dominate Super Bowl LIX to deny Chiefs 3-peat
Eagles dominate Super Bowl LIX to deny Chiefs 3-peat
Chiefs’ Hopkins: ‘Are y’all gonna talk about the refs now?’
Chiefs’ Hopkins: ‘Are y’all gonna talk about the refs now?’
Brady needs to be a star in TV gig, not a game manager
Brady needs to be a star in TV gig, not a game manager
Warriors praise Butler after 1st game with Golden State: ‘He’s a lion’
Warriors praise Butler after 1st game with Golden State: ‘He’s a lion’
D.L. Hughley Says Kendrick Halftime Show 1st Good Thing Since Trump’s Return
D.L. Hughley Says Kendrick Halftime Show 1st Good Thing Since Trump’s Return
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Super Bowl looks turn heads as fans speculate about a possible proposal
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s Super Bowl looks turn heads as fans speculate about a possible proposal
Vince Neil Not on Board Plane Involved In Deadly Crash, Girlfriend Survives
Vince Neil Not on Board Plane Involved In Deadly Crash, Girlfriend Survives
Taylor Swift gets booed, Kendrick Lamar disses Drake — and what was up with that scoreboard? Here are the most viral moments of the night.
Taylor Swift gets booed, Kendrick Lamar disses Drake — and what was up with that scoreboard? Here are the most viral moments of the night.
I Wore Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty Loveline Lingerie Set
I Wore Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty Loveline Lingerie Set
Inside The Society of MSK and NET-A-PORTER’s Winter Lunch
Inside The Society of MSK and NET-A-PORTER’s Winter Lunch
LaQuan Smith’s NYFW Surprise, InStyle’s Wild New Interns!
LaQuan Smith’s NYFW Surprise, InStyle’s Wild New Interns!
Bloomingdale’s and Flamingo Estate’s NYFW Dinner at Casino
Bloomingdale’s and Flamingo Estate’s NYFW Dinner at Casino