Saltburn

Directed by Emerald Fennell, Saltburn follows Barry Keoghan’s Oliver Quick as he’s drawn into the aristocratic world of a exceedingly wealthy classmate named Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi). Filmmaker Fennell, armed with her own screenplay, does a terrific job of initially drawing the viewer into the increasingly erratic proceedings, as Saltburn kicks off with an impressively stylish opening stretch that effectively establishes the oddball central character and the scenario in which he finds himself – although it’s worth noting that, even at this early stage of the proceedings, Keoghan’s off-putting demeanor makes it virtually impossible to wholeheartedly root for his shifty figure (ie Oliver is just so creepy, ultimately). It is, as such, hard to deny that Saltburn grows less and less interesting as it progresses, as the narrative takes several run-of-the-mill turns that are exacerbated by an almost total lack of compelling, sympathetic characters – which, when coupled with a fairly anticlimactic (and entirely obvious) finish, ultimately cements the picture’s place as a watchable yet rather tedious sophomore effort from Fennell.

**1/2 out of ****