I had the absolute privilege of seeing this film in the cinema due to the extended theatrical run (which it absolutely deserves) and I almost lack the words to describe how impressed I was. I can NOT stop thinking about it, and so I wanted to compile a bunch of my thoughts in one place.
One common technique used throughout the film was lighting, and the use of shadows particularly around the character Nikki. I think it’s clear that its use here was to invoke a sense of eeriness, or suspense but it wasn’t the ONLY use. I think it highlights the loss of identity Nikki is experiencing. She becomes a husk of herself, with no autonomy, no control, being driven by an external force that is scrambling together to create an amalgamation of what it thinks Nikki needs to be. (Or to put it bluntly, it is trying to replicate what it deems Bear would want or need). With Nikki often being shown as a silhouette, a lack of emphasis on the face, like a blank, none personal idea of a woman.
There are a few scenes in particular that I want to discuss. Firstly, right after Bear makes the wish, it pans abruptly to Nikki, who is stood frozen in place on her porch. All you can see is her outline, a dark and distant presence, and this is where it begins, the erasure of her self, she becomes a dark, empty vessel ready to be filled. I think this scene is so poignant, you can feel the emptiness, the switch to something off, something colder and more sinister, more empty.
The dinner scene plays with light in a more subtle way, but i really enjoyed how it panned out. They're sat having lunch, and Bear brings up the lies Nikki has told. she then tilts her head slightly to the side, the shadows settling on the creases of her face, a physical appearance of the mental shift occurring. She's about to have an outburst in a way that pre-wish Nikki would never behave, light diminishing as a sign of loss of self.
one of the more memorable scenes of the film is when bear awakens to an empty bed and finds Nikki watching him sleep. its sinister, creepy, and pivotal. Shes fighting with herself, expressions twisting up in the shadows, depraved monolouges, erratic body movements, every act of chaos stemming from a lack of permenant self, dark and empty and scrambling to fill it with something deemed correct. it quickly switches from this, with no visible face, to "normal" when her face reappears.
Finally, when Bear sneaks out and Nikki appears behind Sarah she is completely drenched in darkness, face or any disernable features blurred, just a dark figure with long hair, something for us to tell who it is. She commits the vile, cruel act of murder while entirely in the dark, its only after when she begins talking and explaining and trying to fix it that she is visible again. like the night is a cloud, she cant control any of it anymore, her behaviour out of control in an attempt to fill the void, her wants, desires, goals, her control, gone to the darkness.
It’s important to point out that Nikki also behaves erratically while not in the shadows, particularly towards the climax of the film, however the lighting helps to solidify the loss of autonomy, and i think it was a poignant use, an incredible way to create a suspensful environment while also emphasising a point. there are a few more scenes im missing out, but i didn't want to summarise the whole film, but highlight one of my favourite parts.
