In the five years since the release of his feature debut, Hereditary, writer-director Ari Aster returns to theaters with his biggest, most ambitious film yet. Starring Academy Award-winner Joaquin Phoenix in the titular role, Beau is Afraid is a complex film in more than one meaning of the word. Despite this, the film follows a relatively simple plot. Beau, a paranoiac, must return home to his mother when it feels like everything in the world is trying to stop him, including his own anxieties. Aster describes Beau is Afraid as “a Jewish Lord of the Rings,” and while he is definitely being a little cheeky, he’s not entirely out-of-pocket.
We follow Beau as he leaves his disturbing, fucked up little apartment in an attempt to return to his world’s Mount Doom; the home he grew up in, where his mother lives. Beau’s odyssey takes us into the suburbs where we meet a well-meaning, doting couple, played equal parts hilariously and hauntingly by Nathan Lane and Amy Ryan. We also head into a hypnotic, psychedelic sequence that takes place in the woods, far removed from the chaos of the early parts of the film.
Beau is Afraid is the most overtly comedic film of Aster’s career thus far, anchored by Phoenix’s meek and panicked performance. The rest of the cast are Broadway mainstays and character actors who add to the over-the-top and unsettling nature of Beau’s world. Patti LuPone plays Beau’s mother Mona with menace and melodrama. She steals the center stage away from Phoenix during a particular sequence late in the film.
A younger Mona is played by Zoe Lister-Jones. These scenes, sprinkled throughout Beau is Afraid’s three-hour runtime, build a sort of long-term tension that effectively sets up the finale. Lister-Jones’ performance, as well as the careful placement of her scenes in the film, create an image of Beau’s mother that is inescapable, looming large over all of the proceedings.
Aster also constructs surreal and upsetting imagery throughout Beau is Afraid. Beau’s apartment is falling apart and there’s a brown recluse spider hiding among his sparse decor. His neighborhood is crime-ridden to a cartoonish level. Violence occurs literally in the middle of the street while none of the bystanders do anything to help. Police sirens are a constant. It’s the kind of urban decay that’s often incorrectly described by conservatives, but made real.
When Beau travels to the suburban home of Lane and Ryan’s characters, the setting still feels dangerous. Roger and Grace are kind, and they tend to Beau’s wounds. But he is so wounded psychologically that he feels unsafe in their care. And as a result, we as viewers are waiting for the other shoe to drop. And drop it certainly does.
On a first viewing it can be hard to tell where the film will go next. It’s this tension that creates much of the comedy and the horror of Beau is Afraid. It’s like watching a really fucked up episode of I Think You Should Leave.
If you’re familiar with Aster’s work, you will certainly recognize the thematic similarities to Hereditary and Midsommar. But Beau is Afraid is not nearly as tightly wound as the former, nor as cathartic as the latter. Aster is at the top of his game here and Beau is Afraid is a meticulously crafted nightmare. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea but it’s clear that it achieves what it sets out to, and that’s to unsettle an audience that thinks they know what to expect next from the auteur at the center.
In addition to the three-hour runtime, Beau is Afraid is densely constructed. The aforementioned surreal set pieces and overwhelming sound design are a major part of that complexity. But when the viewer can dig past the surface and start asking questions about Beau’s relationship with his mother, with those around him, with the world at large, that’s where the real movie magic begins to happen.
The surreality never lets up. When you think it might just be a projection or a trauma response, the film decides to double down and create an even more complex setting to explore. I’m being purposefully vague here because discovering what Beau is Afraid is all about is half the fun of seeing the film.
Beau is Afraid is another venomous entry in Ari Aster’s filmography. Joaquin Phoenix leads a perfect cast in a journey that must be seen to be believed.
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