[Still shot from the film Beautiful Friend]

Truman Kelley’s directorial debut exposes the social problem of misogyny and does not need special effects to frighten the viewer.

Reviews

By Aurora Caruso | Edited by Brontë Delmonico

Dark, terrifying, and disturbing. In Truman Kewley‘s directorial debut Beautiful Friend (2023), these words convey what it’s like to be inside the mind of a young incel. Nonetheless, Kewley’s film critically exposes the social problem of misogyny and does not need special effects to frighten the viewer. After all, what is scarier than watching something that could happen to you in real life?

I engaged with a conversation with the film’s director during its selection as a finalist for the Fabrique du Cinéma Awards, an independent film festival in Rome that awards innovation. Behind what appears to be a film with a minimalist aesthetic and narrative lies an idea that adds a layer of complexity to the issue of misogyny.

During our conversation, Kewley shared his interests and revealed that, while studying at university, he was particularly drawn to psychology and sociology. However, once he received a loan from the university, he purchased a camera and opted to leave his studies behind. He chose to make his first film a psychological thriller, a genre well-suited for low-budget and independent filmmaking.

Through his narrative, the director aims to challenge the media’s oversimplified portrayal of individuals who commit acts of violence. The film was described as an immersive first-person dive into the mind of a sociopath, a characterization that trivializes the director’s goal of breaking stereotypes and revealing the humanity of characters who are often stripped of it.

The main theme of this story is a deep-seated hatred towards women, which materializes through the interaction between a young man and a woman. However, Kewley approaches this issue from an unusual and controversial perspective, brutally shining a light on the inner psyche of those who perpetuate such hatred. The innovative strength of this young director lies in his ability to depict reality by delving beyond its surface.

Beautiful Friend (HD trailer) – by Hewes Pictures shared on Vimeo

At the center of Beautiful Friend is the mind of the young incel Daniel, played by Adam Jones, and how he interprets the reality around him. The young man obsessively fixates on women, whom he blames for his state of loneliness. Hoping to escape this mental state, he kidnaps a girl.

On one hand, Beautiful Friend explicitly depicts the psychological and physical violence that the young woman is forced to endure; on the other, it thrusts the viewer into the dark reality of the perpetrator. In this film, violence is experienced through the emotions of the one committing the act. The audience embarks on a journey into the mind of an unstable, fragile, and cruel individual, where, at times, the main young woman, Madison, appears to stereotypically empathize with him.

Beautiful Friend is a film that attempts to portray both sides of the scale while remaining indifferent to choosing between Madison and Daniel. Madison, played by actress Alexandrea Meyers, struggles to find her own place within the narrative. Despite her authentic performance, the viewer cannot help but wonder why her character is not explored more deeply.

In this film, the violence is in Daniel’s hands, and Madison is the victim of his kidnapping. What develops between the two characters is a violent intimacy that is portrayed as both credible and, most importantly, safe, thanks to the collaboration between the director, the actors, and intimacy coordinator Vanessa Blackstone, who was present on set.

The young director not only directs the film and writes the screenplay, but also handles the cinematography, works on the editing, and collaborates on the film’s production. From a sound perspective, guiding the narrative is Daniel’s voiceover. Furthermore, the internal thoughts of the young incel are visually represented on screen through brief, superimposed misogynistic language. Kewley’s cinematography was also compared to the style of the visionary director Terrence Malick due to its minimalist, naturalistic aesthetic.

Impartial, angry, and desolate, Kewley’s directorial debut offers a bird’s-eye view of a patriarchal society that feeds on hatred toward women and the repression of emotions in men.

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