Beast

Name: Beast
Genre: Drama
Released: May 11, 2018
Duration: 107 min
Rating: 74
Cast: Charley Palmer Merkell, Claire Rafferty, Emily Taaffe, Geraldine James, Hattie Gotobed

2018

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 29 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Ratings

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7.0

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7.0	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Ratings

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Beast (US Trailer)

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Movie Details & Credits

Roadside Attractions | Release Date: May 11, 2018 | Not Rated

Starring: Charley Palmer Merkell, Claire Rafferty, Emily Taaffe, Geraldine James, Hattie Gotobed, Jessie Buckley, Johnny Flynn, Oliver Maltman, Olwen Fouere, Shannon Tarbet, Tim Woodward, Trystan Gravelle

Summary: Moll (Jessie Buckley) is 27 and still living at home, stifled by the small island community around her and too beholden to her family to break away. When she meets Pascal (Johnny Flynn), a free-spirited stranger, a whole new world opens up to her and she begins to feel alive for the first time, falling madly in love. Finally breaking freeMoll (Jessie Buckley) is 27 and still living at home, stifled by the small island community around her and too beholden to her family to break away. When she meets Pascal (Johnny Flynn), a free-spirited stranger, a whole new world opens up to her and she begins to feel alive for the first time, falling madly in love. Finally breaking free from her family, Moll moves in with Pascal to start a new life. But when he is arrested as the key suspect in a series of brutal murders, she is left isolated and afraid. Choosing to stand with him against the suspicions of the community, Moll finds herself forced to make choices that will impact her life forever.… Expand

Director: Michael Pearce

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 107 min

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Critic Reviews

Jeannette Catsoulis

May 10, 2018

Bathed in a shadowy beauty and slippery psychological atmosphere, “Beast” soars on Ms. Buckley’s increasingly animalistic performance. Read full review

The Film Stage Jared Mobarak

Jun 1, 2018

Buckley and Flynn keep us on our toes, their darkened malice turning to teary-eyed contrition until we’re left hopeless as far as figuring out which is more real. Read full review

Leslie Felperin

Apr 25, 2018

British thriller Beast takes a fistful of tired old tropes — like a hunt for a serial killer, and the ‘ol Joe Eszterhas-style is-he-or-isn’t-he-a-baddie tease — and manages to fashion something fresh, fierce and quite striking from them. Read full review

Barbara VanDenburgh

May 17, 2018

On the whole it’s a remarkably controlled exercise. It’s to the film’s credit that Moll is the center of attention from start to finish, and not even a romantically damaged bad boy can steal the spotlight from her barely contained wildfire of emotions. Read full review

Andrew Crump

May 19, 2018

Beast plays with enough restraint to sustain our doubts for most of its duration, its gentle and often lovely filmmaking lulling us toward false certainties about its underlying inhumanity. Read full review

Anthony Lane

May 7, 2018

Beast is at its best when Buckley is at her most undaunted, showing us Moll at her most extreme — when she lies down by moonlight, for instance, in the shallow hole where a murder victim was found, beside a potato field. Read full review

The Playlist Kevin Jagernauth

Apr 25, 2018

Beast takes a storytelling gamble, presenting itself as a psychological whodunit, before pivoting toward a more genre oriented plot. The risk doesn’t quite pay off, undercutting its thematic potential for thrills that aren’t quite that effective. Read full review

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User Reviews

GinaK

May 21, 2018

I expected this movie to be a slightly off-beat traditional horror film, but it is not. It’s better than that. It’s a fascinating and complex character study of a young couple who are “beasts” each in their own ways – one is a psychopath and the other has definite impulse control issues andI expected this movie to be a slightly off-beat traditional horror film, but it is not. It’s better than that. It’s a fascinating and complex character study of a young couple who are “beasts” each in their own ways – one is a psychopath and the other has definite impulse control issues and has had them for a very long time. They meet, fall in love – and I won’t spoil the ending for you. The actors are fantastic and totally believable, and the script and direction are excellent. The suspense is in discovering exactly what kind of people they are since neither is unattractive, and in the end, when you understand the characters, the situation is tragic – and not just for their victims.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

imdoingmypart

Jun 11, 2018

Alfred Hitchcock created film experiences that, as the credits roll, both excite and depress me a bit knowing that they are near the peak of film mysteries in general. More than fifty years later, it is still a thrill to thrown on Rear Window or Psycho and become immersed in theAlfred Hitchcock created film experiences that, as the credits roll, both excite and depress me a bit knowing that they are near the peak of film mysteries in general. More than fifty years later, it is still a thrill to thrown on Rear Window or Psycho and become immersed in the always-clever "who done it" situations, whether they are confined to an apartment building or sprawled out over a national monument. It is incredibly rare to encounter a murder mystery that even belongs in the same sentence as one of Hitchcock's seminal works, and it is even more special to see one of these high quality films when the director's last name is not "Fincher." 2018 now has its great murder mystery in Beast.

In the vein of Hitchcock's thrillers, Beast quietly introduces Moll, a disengaged young woman living unwillingly in British aristocracy on an island. Similar to Titanic's Rose, Moll enjoys a luxurious but ultimately empty existence. Her family is not a unit to be admired; her sister is kind enough to announce her pregnancy in the middle of Moll's birthday party. Moll has had enough and decides to seek adventure via night clubs and island adventures. She soon meets Pascal, a mysterious young man who marches to his own drum and seems to lack any connection with society. Moll's family predictably rejects Pascal, causing increasing tension between Moll and her family and heightening her desire to simply run away and live the simple life with Pascal. Everything becomes far more complicated, however, when the police announce a connection between a string of murders that have occurred on the island in the past couple of years. The film then launches into a tense mystery where the audience and police race to figure out who could have committed these crimes. Beast is shockingly grounded and does not get caught up in the silliness that plagues far too many mystery films. Its grounded nature causes Beast to function simultaneously as a study of psychology and sociology, avoiding cliches and allowing certain character motivations to remain as thrilling a mystery as the murders themselves. Moll and Pascal both have troubled pasts but are currently well-behaved and even submissive to authority; what caused them to act out in the past? The film is greatly rewarding and ties together all loose ends without any cheap tricks. Beast actually becomes more and more engaging as it moves along and never forces any grossly sentimental moments or suspension of disbelief. Its small and grounded nature is what allows the film to achieve such a rewarding third act.

Comparing almost any film to the works of Hitchcock is a bit ridiculous, and Beast will certainly not be revered on the same level as Rear Window and Psycho. But not every mystery film needs to be a cinematic masterpiece, and Beast finds great success in its subdued nature. This strong mystery film is wholly engaging, shockingly deep, and full of enough twists and turns to provide a thrilling theater experience that is more reminiscent of film's greatest mystery installments than just about any other recent crime thriller.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

DallasTex

May 20, 2018

I was pleasantly surprised by this film. Its a quirky, psychological thriller. Its an unusual story for the genre and has a number of interesting plot turns and character development.

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

JLuis_001

Aug 26, 2018

A slow burner that grows and begins to improve as time passes and the story begins to wrap you more as you get to know the characters.

The ending disappointed me a little because although I heard that some people found it shocking I felt it was somewhat anticlimactic, especially becauseA slow burner that grows and begins to improve as time passes and the story begins to wrap you more as you get to know the characters.

The ending disappointed me a little because although I heard that some people found it shocking I felt it was somewhat anticlimactic, especially because Jessie Buckley's character is a bunch of disorientation and her final action feels more like something that the script got out of its sleeve than something truly calculated.

However, I think it's a good drama, the suspense and tension are good enough to keep your attention. It's a good option.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

The3AcademySins

May 18, 2018

Beast is a serviceable thriller that is almost a great movie. Captivating cinematography, psychologically immersive sound design, and incredible performances from Johnny Flynn and Jessie Buckley aren't enough to stop the wheels falling off the bus in the third act. The script is easily theBeast is a serviceable thriller that is almost a great movie. Captivating cinematography, psychologically immersive sound design, and incredible performances from Johnny Flynn and Jessie Buckley aren't enough to stop the wheels falling off the bus in the third act. The script is easily the weakest part of the movie, which is a real shame, as this is almost something to remember. In acting terms, Jessie Buckley carries the film with an animalistic passion, and her chemistry with Johnny Flynn is electrifying. The script sells itself short. I can't go into more detail without spoiling the movie.

The sound design is so anxiety producing that I was on the edge of my seat for most of the first and second act.

Overall, this is a pleasant first offering from Michael Pearce. If you like good acting, you'll definitely appreciate Beast. As far as story goes, there are better thrillers out there, but the craftsmanship that went into making this movie is still worth a watch.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

amheretojudge

Feb 6, 2019

And No More Beauty.

Beast Pearce has captured a real romance between the already explored debate of nature and nurture, with a result so stupendous, that the horror aspect of the film melts away as a cathartic release. There is a lot to admire and little to exhale for, and those bits isAnd No More Beauty.

Beast

Pearce has captured a real romance between the already explored debate of nature and nurture, with a result so stupendous, that the horror aspect of the film melts away as a cathartic release. There is a lot to admire and little to exhale for, and those bits is where Pearce relies upon old textbook methods, his execution on such dodgy sequences is what stabilizes the film. The first act that flirts wildly on the screen and draws its audience actually denses up the content by using the threat metaphorically and create a tense family drama.

After which the tone shifts into a love story crossing barriers through big antics and elements so clean and sharp that pierces through your heart as these lead characters blend. The last act, which is followed by, the horror drama, that pins down to the last point on mark, this is where Pearce swoops in and saves the day, to fluctuate the tone so fluently is sheer brilliance. Flynn as the beast, or so they say, mirrors the imagination of the outer world of our society, and just like it, the uneasiness and edginess that appeals the viewers is decently fabricated by him.

But he is barely the factor affecting the equation, all the money is on Buckley and no one leaving the screen is going to feel cheated. Her poised falseness plastered by the society and her family is too fake to stand alongside them in the room, so boundless and fearless in her journey, that she grows into one of our worries. Technically, Pearce's world takes much more than it gives to us, but maybe once a while we ought to give it to something, it is surely in safe hands. Beast is every bit of human and every bit of animal there should be, in us and in them.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

TVJerry

Jun 4, 2018

Who's the titular character? Is it young, rebellious Moll (Jessie Buckley) or her enigmatic new beau (Johnny Flynn). She defies her domineering mom and takes up with this man who may also be a serial killer. There's an opportunity for a suspenseful situation, but the leaden pace and lack ofWho's the titular character? Is it young, rebellious Moll (Jessie Buckley) or her enigmatic new beau (Johnny Flynn). She defies her domineering mom and takes up with this man who may also be a serial killer. There's an opportunity for a suspenseful situation, but the leaden pace and lack of compelling interactions keep it from achieving any degree of apprehension. It's more about their passionate romance and her rebellious attitude than it is about the killings. Although the promise is there, the payoff isn't.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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