Saltburn Review: Art or Insanity?

Emerald Fennel’s Saltburn explores an unlikely pairing between Euphoria’s Jacob Elordi and Marvel Eternals star, Barry Keoghan.

Barry Keoghan plays Oxford scholarship student, Oliver Quick, who after a very short amount of time, becomes infatuated with his local college superstar, Felix Catton (and to be honest, If I were at Oxford in 2006, I’d feel the same way). It appears as though Fennel was on a mission to intersperse as many sexy montages of Elordi throughout the film as possible. Thank you Emerald Fennel for your service!

The plot quickly transcends into an arguably one-sided homoerotic love story between the pair. Always an inch apart from the other’s lips, the sexual tension formed the foundations for the story — Oliver debated whether or not he was in love with Felix during the opening scene. While Fennel could’ve explored Felix’s character in more detail, (at times he felt like a figment of Oliver’s imagination, but I suspect that might have been intentional) the movie did a good job of depicting a friendship dynamic based on class and power hierarchy.

Felix takes pity on Oliver, who comes from a humble background in comparison to Felix’s aristocratic custom. After a tragic event befalls Oliver, Felix invites him to spend the summer at his Saltburn estate.

The movie begins to feel disjointed at this point. What seemingly begins as an ode to Luca Guadagnino’s Call Me By Your Name, suddenly takes a drastic turn to something else entirely. I had completely forgotten that the movie fell into the ‘thriller’ category before watching it. Even when I remembered, I was still shocked at some of the questionable scenes within the film.

Despite this, the strength of the acting in the second half of the movie definitely did not go unnoticed. Rosamund Pike plays Elordi’s eccentric mother and Fennel had the genius idea to partner her with Richard E Grant, as Sir James Catton, the owner of the Saltburn estate. Other family members include Felix’s sister Valentia, played by Alison Oliver in her movie debut, and their deviously saucy American cousin Farleigh, portrayed excellently by Midsommar star, Archie Madekwe.

Fennel managed to maintain a balance of comedy and thrill through the film’s dialogue. Most lines contained a rich blend of sheer creepiness and a natural awkwardness that at times made me physically cringe in my seat. Even when there wasn’t any dialogue, Keoghan’s sullen features told the story, often in a horrifyingly perverted way. Desperate with the idea of her audience feeling something: whether it be disturbed, moved, or otherwise, there were times when all plot went out the window and I was left muttering profanities under my breath. It has been debated whether or not the twist at the end of the film was predictable. I sit quite firmly in the middle: there were parts I definitely anticipated, and other parts that did stir me.

At its core, Saltburn is a testament to those who fear rejection to the point of obsessive insanity. Apparently, it’s more common than you think.