Reflecting Skin (1990)

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Avg Rating: 3.9 / 5. Voted: 37

No one cared thus far. Do you?


AKA:
Directed by: Philip Ridley
Starring: Jeremy Cooper (Seth), Lindsay Duncan (Dolphin Blue), Viggo Mortensen (Cameron), Sheila Moore (Mother), Duncan Fraser (Father)
Country: Canada
Language: English (Optional Eng Subs)
Runtime: 01:35:47
Genres: Teen-Childhood, Killers, Violence Against-Animals

Plot – Spoilers:
A bunch of pesky little boys spend a summer roaming the vast swathes of nothingness they live around. Exploding frogs is one source of fun for them, but mostly they’re stupid and bored. There’s a widow they believe to be a vampire, and that’s the extent of their lives and world because each of their families offer them nothing else.

And then they go missing one by one and a closeted gay man is blamed for the murders.

The Reflecting Skin isn’t so much about child-murders as it is about a surreal summer of childhood.

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Dickens
Dickens
October 27, 2021 2:55 pm

Oh I always wondered how u ended up as you grew older, Jeliza.. On drugs like your parents? Definitely one of my top 5 movies, I want to visit Qu’Apelle Valley one day, I hear the house is still standing there.
I did the same thing, I even offered to send them my HDrip, or send them the link to the best HDrip available. Just because I wanted more people to see the film. Never heard anything.

Not many movies like this unfortunately, it’s these two and Paperhouse (1988) about a young girl escaping into her imagination (sounds familiar?) And just check out the amazing pictures on Google images and I think yup will look forward to seeing this.

Grandma on crack
Grandma on crack
October 4, 2021 4:29 pm

MY GRANDCHILDREN WOULD LOVE THIS ON CRACK!!11

Pufferpunk
Pufferpunk
September 30, 2021 2:48 am

Bravo, great pick! Loved the cast & storyline.

tonyelmono
tonyelmono
September 13, 2021 12:17 pm

Right on, my kid of movie.

Trystn Bailey
Trystn Bailey
June 2, 2021 12:37 am

Couldnt finish i fell asleep after catching myself browsing social media. A real sleeper this one.

groosa
groosa
May 22, 2021 11:29 pm

cant fucking belive dolphin died, at least she died knowing she was loved

obbillo
obbillo
Reply to  groosa
October 3, 2021 2:38 pm

Yeah I bet those guys in the car showed her some real loving!

kuro-chan
kuro-chan
May 13, 2021 6:50 pm

nothing like a good movie that makes you want to cease living in this world

G!mmeD!sturb!ngSh!t
G!mmeD!sturb!ngSh!t
May 13, 2021 6:14 pm

was tryna watch this yesterday and turned it off after half hour, got bored and annoyed it’s so slow, imma try to finish it today but ain’t got high hopes

pain
pain
May 13, 2021 6:51 am

The scenery is unreal, so emotional 🙁

lisa
lisa
Reply to  pain
May 13, 2021 2:15 pm

dito!

Jeliza Rose
Jeliza Rose
Reply to  pain
October 3, 2021 2:31 pm

Yes, absolutely beautiful. The endless fields and dilapitated farmhouses reminded me soo much of Terry Gilliams Tideland, another underrated film that definitely belong on this site! Tips for other movies in this setting?

A bit of trivia, neither film was shot in Idaho or Texas, but Canada! Tideland is one my favorites, anyone else here who loves it? I’ve asked effedup to add it just so more people will get a chance to see it, but no response yet

Dickens
Dickens
Reply to  Jeliza Rose
October 27, 2021 2:56 pm

Something went wrong, check my reply to you further down

Noxg
Noxg
May 13, 2021 4:52 am

*SPOILER ALERT* Of course Seth’s brother will be sad because his lover died but I don’t quite understand why Seth cried and shouts in the end, he hates Dolphine right?

Heidi
Heidi
Reply to  Noxg
May 13, 2021 11:18 pm

Found the explanation on Wikipedia: because Seth does not warn Dolphin about the men in the Cadillac, he is in effect responsible for her death. This causes Cameron to become a broken man, and Seth – realising he has lost his brother – screams his anger at the sky. (Check the site for exact details).

Elliot Spencer
Elliot Spencer
Reply to  Noxg
May 14, 2021 2:09 am

If I could offer a differing opinion than the wiki article, n one I have thought since I first viewed the film: I have always felt the name of this film, The Reflecting Skin, is an allegory about the reflecting skin we put on, our armor if u will, even when our lives/the world around us is crumbling. His dad is dead, brother/friends dying or dead, yet he didn’t want to recognize everything falling apart and the sadness around him. Him asking about the name of the child in the photo, as well as him taking the mummified fetus under his wing, so to speak, I feel relates to this, amongst other things. Then at the end he realizes the world around him for what it is , his ‘reflecting skin’/armor/himself finally broken. Screams at sky. Just my own opinion n what I’ve always felt since originally seeing it. Peace;)

Btw, its not often I can look someone dead in the eye and tell them ‘u will not see another film like this’. 10/10, standing ovation, will always b a fav of mine. Glad it finally got the release it deserved a couple years ago! Thx as always, admins.

Thomas Cabral
Thomas Cabral
May 12, 2021 10:23 pm

Oh, this is a fantastic movie. Very much worth the watch if you want to see something shocking and effective, yet still accessible.

???????
???????
May 12, 2021 9:35 pm

like a feverdream.

fred fat
fred fat
May 11, 2021 10:42 pm

ignore the comments below unless you must have everything neatly resolved by the end of a film
this is worth a watch

pain
pain
Reply to  fred fat
May 13, 2021 6:52 am

thanks man i saw that comment and was gonna turn away its a 5/5 for me

Dr. Lecter
Dr. Lecter
May 11, 2021 8:42 pm

This film had so much potential to be a really great movie, but it fizzled out big time, leaving nothing but loose ends and eclectic, unlikable characters. Too many hints and not enough conclusions – like Cam dying of radiation poisoning. And Seth having not one, not two, but three run-ins with big black Cadillac full of killers, yet he said nothing about it. Not a peep. And that sheriff! Talk about a WTF kind of guy. He was strait out of a David Lynch film without the Pabst Blue Ribbon. (If you’re confused, say “Here’s to you fuck, Frank” 3 times and watch Blue Velvet). Here’s the thing with this type of movie: somewhere down the line, somebody thought this was a good idea and invested a shit-ton of duckets into the project. And I personally have two concerns. 1. What exactly were they smoking; and, more importantly, 2. where can I get some?

Thank you, Admin….for both the 5 and 2 stars movies. Because you know what they say. Variety is two in the bush that gathers no moss.

Zed Man
Zed Man
Reply to  Dr. Lecter
September 9, 2021 11:00 am

Yeah, ”Blue Velvet” is one of my favourite films, love Dennis Hopper as Frank especially when he says ” I will fuck anything that moves!”. What a classic line lol.

Chuck Bicuits
Chuck Bicuits
Reply to  Dr. Lecter
October 30, 2021 1:44 pm

Write war & peace next time cunt,no one cares about your 409945 word essay polesmoker