Under cover of darkness, faces hidden by white masks and with God’s vengeful hand at their side, a group of psychotic sociopaths roam through the streets in search of loose women and beat them within an inch of their lives unless they agree into joining them as they travel to the kingdom of righteousness. Lead my Mariana (Mari Oliveira) these girls believe it is their duty to save as many women from the hell fires of damnation as possible.
After one of the fallen fights back and slashes Mari in the face, things start to turn. She’s fired from her job at a botox clinic (because she’s disfigured and unpleasant to look at) she goes on a journey to find Melissa, a girl who was set on fire by the group and went into hiding. Eventually, the weight of the world explodes and those who hurt the most will have their day of glory.
Medusa is a devilishly satirical take on how religious rules ruins lives. A group of women, brainwashed by men who want to control them. These girls could easily use their powers to fight the real evils in the world as opposed to controlling other women into submission and recruit them for their army of future baby factories, while the men are groomed as soldiers of God’s army, who must make sure that everyone bows down in submission if they want to make god happy.
Written and directed by Anita Rocha da Silveira, we get a glimpse into a dystopian world where any act of temptation is treated as an affront to the lord. Strong performances from all the women, you see and feel their struggle to be good people while at the same time exposing the ridiculousness and hypocrisy of religion. Violence is okay if God wills it, there is no grey area and the word is the word. Women are controlled, even though they have the most power and the only way they will be free is by saying no. This movie has strong echoes of Suspiria with bright neon light acting as a safety net for all the bad things that are happening in the shadows. This is a stunning piece that reminds audiences that blind devotion will never end well.
Reviewed online (screener provided by publicist), July 18, 2021. Running time: 127 min.
PRODUCTION: A Bananeira Filmes & MyMama Entertainment production. Producers: Mayra Auad & Vânia Catani. Executive producer: Tarcila Jacob
CREW: Director/writer: Anita Rocha de Silveira. Cinematography: João Atala. Editing: Marilia Moraes. Music: Bernardo Uzeda.
CAST: Mari Oliveira, Thiago Fragoso, Lara Tremouroux, Bruna G., Felipe Frazão, Joana Medeiros, Arthur Santileone.
This sounds amazing. Can’t wait to see it