In the Earth
Ben Wheatley blends science with folklore in his unsettling lockdown special.
The nature of things: Joel Fry and Ellora Torchia
Some believe that the coronavirus is the planet’s tactic for protecting itself. Others suspect that it’s a ruse to endorse a vaccination programme designed to monitor the populace. And, scary as the spread of Covid-19 appears, the reality of different sectors of society turning against itself – the anti-vaxxers vs. the pro-vaxxers – could be even scarier. Ben Wheatley’s In the Earth starts with ‘the new normal.’ A slightly nerdy scientist called Martin (Joel Fry) arrives at a governmental outpost in dense woodland. The usual precautions are adhered to – he is sprayed and injected – and Martin gets to meet his guide, Alma (Ellora Torchia), who is to take him on a two-day trek to a research camp even deeper in the forest. As the new normal can be, it’s all very matter-of-fact. The world is in the grip of a pandemic and many of life’s former conveniences are no longer tenable. So Martin and Alma have to make their journey by foot…
Ben Wheatley, who has dabbled in various genres with a darkly comic bent, is not out to spare the viewer. It is to the advantage of the drama that everything kicks off so prosaically and low-key. Joel Fry, most recently seen in Yesterday and Cruella, is the perfect Everyman, a slightly self-conscious, terribly English sort who takes everything at face value. There is talk of a woodland spirit, Parnag Fegg, and one begins to sense a Wicker Man vibe of sylvan worship and demonic ritual. Indeed, Wheatley is at his best when blending science with folklore and merrily leads the viewer by the nose into genres unknown. Here there be whiffs of Nicolas Roeg and Danny Boyle, as well as hints of Deliverance and Wolf Creek.
As with many original works, an element of surprise is tantamount, so woe betide the critic who gives anything away. One should, though, warn the reader that In the Earth is not for the faint-hearted and there are scenes that could prove extremely problematic for those of a timorous nature. And talking of nature, Wheatley has enormous fun in tapping into the theories of Suzanne Simard, a professor of forest ecology who discovered that trees could communicate with each other through networks of roots and fungi.
While frequently suspenseful and never less than intriguing, In the Earth is an imaginative piece that wavers between the innovative and the completely barmy. It is perhaps unsurprising that the filmmaker cooked up In the Earth during lockdown and shot it on a tight fifteen-day schedule, and too often it shows. The strengths of the film lie in its sound design and the music by the redoubtable Clint Mansell, not to mention the hallucinogenic sequences concocted in the editing process. And special mention should go to the comedian Reece Shearsmith in a career-altering turn as a pragmatic woodsman with an enigmatic agenda.
In the Earth ain’t A Quiet Place, but it will earn its quiet place among those mind trips favoured by genre aficionados.
JAMES CAMERON-WILSON
Cast: Joel Fry, Reece Shearsmith, Hayley Squires, Ellora Torchia, John Hollingworth, Mark Monero.
Dir Ben Wheatley, Pro Andy Starke, Ex Pro Ben Wheatley, Screenplay Ben Wheatley, Ph Nick Gillespie, Pro Des Felicity Hickson, Ed Ben Wheatley, Music Clint Mansell, Costumes Emma Fryer, Covid Supervisor Uli Kress.
Rook Films/Protagonist Pictures-Universal Pictures.
108 mins. UK. 2021. Rel: 17 June 2021. Cert. 15.
