General Discussion Skinamarink (1 Viewer)

[Polbroth]

Shot for 15 thousand in the director's childhood home, people are loving it or hating it:

https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/994143-skinamarink

Has anyone here seen it to share their impressions?

 

[TonyD]

Doesn’t look like there has been enough access to the movie yet.

I’ll look at it eventually.

 

[JoeStemme]

It's definitely a love/hate kind of movie. Pure arthouse experimental stuff. Surprised it got a general release.

Still mulling it over.

Anyone?

 

[TonyD]

I forgot about but.

It’s on Hulu.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I've seen it. Basically, I guess I would say, if you like David Lynch this may be for you. It feels like his style, to sort of show you things, drop you into the darkness, and give you the feeling and impression of creepy. I doubt that the film will terrify anybody as they watch it but it could end up giving you a nightmare because it is almost as if you are supposed to pick-up on what is happening at a subliminal level.

It's kind of like an entire film of all the dark and quiet house parts of Lost Highway.

I think some people will enjoy it for the weird and creepy atmosphere, others will say "What a waste of time!" because it does not go for any sort of overt horror, it is more of a get under your skin and let the weirdness seep in as you sit submerged in the house it drops you into. This is one of those films that asks the viewer to bring their own stuff to the table, your fears, what creeps you out, more than delivering a straightforward scare.

So, yeah, if you love atmosphere and don't mind slow, and want to sit in a dark house where something is not quite right for about an hour and a half, this is for you. If you are looking for scary stuff to jump out at you...not happening here.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I would also advise that you watch it in a very dark room and where you won't be disturbed by outside noise and sounds. You kind of need to sit and stare at the screen and just listen and see if you start to feel creeped out. If you just walk in to a brightly lit room and other people are there and they are chatting...well...this will play like a dark screensaver.

 

[JoeStemme]

I would also advise that you watch it in a very dark room and where you won't be disturbed by outside noise and sounds. You kind of need to sit and stare at the screen and just listen and see if you start to feel creeped out. If you just walk in to a brightly lit room and other people are there and they are chatting...well...this will play like a dark screensaver.

I can't imagine either watching it in a bright room, or at one of those 2nd tier cinemas with a dim projector bulb or where they don't turn the house lights all the way down.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I can't imagine either watching it in a bright room, or at one of those 2nd tier cinemas with a dim projector bulb or where they don't turn the house lights all the way down.

Yeah, I kind of think this is a film to watch alone in the dark. Really, not watching it that way I think detracts from what it is trying to do. It's not really a film to watch with an audience, I think, because nothing happens that will elicit a big audience response. I think this one is just about your individual experience with it. You will either find it creepy or like watching paint dry.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I forgot to say, I liked it when I saw it. Didn't love it but found it an original mood piece. It's not much more than that. I watched it all alone in a very dark room late at night. I think if I watched it with another person or people there would have been talking during the show like "What the hell do you think is happening?" or someone asking "Is anything going to happen in this?" and that would just not work watching this film. You really just have to take it in and think about it for it to work.

I don't think it is a great film but it is different and these days getting something different is kind of nice. So, recommended if you like the offbeat and if you like the quiet and creepy parts of Lynch films. That's about all I can say on it.

 

[JoeStemme]

Still formulating my thoughts but I have two theories on "what's it all about?" (that is, IF there is a rational explanation:

Spoiler

1. There is some portal to another dimension in the house where the ghosts/demons come from and cause mayhem
2. It's a nightmare about a family's murder/suicide
thoughts??

 

[JoeStemme]

my full take on it:

SKINAMARINK (2023) Full marks to Writer-Director Kyle Edward Ball. He came up with a concept and doggedly keeps to it, with virtually no concessions to his viewers. SKINAMARINK (named after a similarly titled old nursery rhyme) is an experimental arthouse horror project. Two little kids, Kevin (Lucas Paul) and his sister Haylee (Dali R. Tetrault) wander around their family home in 1995. Their parents (Ross Paul and Jaime Hill) are in their bedroom. They see a few visions, and, possibly, some violence. And, that's it as far as any real 'plot' is concerned.

From the outset, Ball and his Cinematographer Jamie McRae plunge the viewer in what looks like a battered old 70s grindhouse 35mm film print transfered to VHS tape (the viewer sees a few discarded cassettes strewn around for good measure). Almost all of the movie's credits are at the opening as well. The camera is intentionally almost never aimed at anything in particular - walls, ceilings, stairs, doors, feet and hands. Occassionally, one of the kids or parents is seen full body -- as if by accident. Much of the source lighting is either from a very low wattage night lite, flashlight or the glow from a TV. For minutes on end, the viewer can't make out anything but videotape noise. The dialogue is all hushed and whispered, with some it subtitled (its often so unintelligibe that many will want to turn on the closed captions). The movie must have been high near impossible to watch in a dingy theater with bad projection (Hint: turn off all the lights when watching it at home).

So, what is SKINAMARINK? It's proabably best to take it as a conceptual piece to simply experience. Boredom is part of the viewer's journey. If you get on its bead, one can find themselves mesmerized in an almost hypnotic state as you stare into the abyss. It's like a 60s Andy Warhol art film - almost daring one to turn away or off completely. It makes other minimalism movies like THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY look like the latest entry in the Fast & Furious franchise by comparison.

There are tiny hints at a possible “plotline”. A nod here or there to POLTERGEIST and THE SHINING. Maybe a murder. Potentially, a portal to another dimenstion. Most likely, it's a representation of some form of 'Dream Logic', but the more concrete one wants to make of it, the less enjoyable it becomes. Why would a widescreen film be captured on old VHS? Why are there a couple of jump scares? If it's someone's dream, why would they be staring at the floorboards or a piece of empty carpet? Why does the POV shift from objective to subjective (not to mention from one entity to another)? Why are some edits smooth and others seemingly random?

In many ways, SKINAMARINK might have been more effective as a short rather than at 100 minutes (of course, as noted, the tedium is part of the message). It will be interesting to see what Ball does with a more narrative feature. For now, SKINAMARINK stands as both a fascinating and an enervating exercise -- often concurrently.

SKINAMARINK is currently available to stream on Hulu, Shudder and AMC+ - also for rental.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I can't recall right now what film the line comes from but I recall the line "Sometimes you've just got to let art wash over you." and that applied to this. I did not try to take it apart and figure it out when I watched it. It felt like a mood piece to me. I believe one of the theories about it is we are seeing events from the house's POV.

I guess I watched it last October from my post above. It did not stick with me and honestly, I can't clearly recall a scene from it now.