Armen Nahapetian, left, and Zoe Lister-Jones in the movie “Beau Is Afraid.” Credit: A24 Films via TNS
Ari Aster attained notoriety in the horror film world after the visionary wrote and directed two of the most popular horror movies of the past decade: “Hereditary” in 2018 and “Midsommar” in 2019. Both films became instant horror classics due to Aster’s masterful use of shock value and eerie scores to frighten his audience.
Aster’s most recent film, “Beau is Afraid,” isn’t strictly a horror movie like his previous projects but is much more shocking and at times will leave even the most seasoned Aster fans’ jaws on the floor. The plot of “Beau is Afraid” is nearly impossible to explain without spoiling a major plot point.
Aster’s use of surrealism and reliance on shock value means audiences can expect plenty of twists and turns. Detailing every point of the movie would fail to explain the plot to someone who hasn’t seen it, as there’s a completely surreal and nonsensical turn in almost every scene and any attempt at making sense of the plot would end up sounding like complete gibberish. If anyone in the audience blinks, they might open their eyes and not recognize the movie in front of them.
Loosely, the movie follows Beau Wassermann (Joaquin Phoenix), a middle-aged man living in an apartment in a “Mean Streets” style neighborhood, who has a very unhealthy, codependent relationship with his wealthy CEO mother who lives separate from him in an illustrious mansion. Phoenix plays Beau in his own recognizable style, with shades of his portrayal of the Joker and other method roles shining through this performance.
If there’s anything Beau should be afraid of, it might be the three-hour runtime. Sitting through “Beau is Afraid” is exhausting, but it makes sense why it had to be so lengthy as to fit in everything the story needed. Audiences will never be bored watching it, although they may feel as though they’ve aged a few years. The first hour is genuinely great and surprisingly funny, but the deeper the movie goes the more it starts to lose the viewer — until the final act where it turns into a straight-up horror film.
“Beau is Afraid” feels like the twisted cousin to “Everything Everywhere All at Once” not only in its elaborate sets and mind-bending plot, but in the way both movies revolve around relationships with mothers. “Beau is Afraid ” takes a much more Freudian approach on this relationship, which is partly why it doesn’t stick the landing. Movies like David Lynch’s “Blue Velvet” and Denis Villeneuve’s “Enemy” have already touched on these themes in a much more nuanced way, and those familiar with this particular surrealist subgenre of film may be less surprised by certain plot points.
That’s not to say “Beau is Afraid” doesn’t work really well at some points — audiences may have the best time they’ve had in a theater all year at certain points — but at other times, they may wish they bought a ticket to a different movie. “Beau is Afraid” is a nausea-inducing rollercoaster that always feels like it’s seconds away from crashing.
Rating: 3.5/5
