Review of Excision

Imagine, if you will, "Carrie" by way of Lucky McKee's "May" and run through a Lynchian grinder and you get "Excision". Though not for everyone, it hits the right spot for those inclined to like the more outre.

The film centers on Pauline, a morbid, socially awkward misfit living in a perpetual suburban nightmare. Her home, school, and social endeavors are all disastrous in light of her disregard for social constructs. Her direct, almost clinical, bluntness comes across as both darkly comedic and unsettling which serves well for us to understand her as well as those reacting to her. Oddly, she is prone to flights of fancy that border on delusion where her aspirations to be a surgeon almost serve as the key to normalcy and acceptance she craves despite her constant rebellion against all that surrounds her.

It is her self-perceived confidence and brilliance that allows her to come to terms with a god she'd rather not believe in and find the answer to the problems that plague her life. Sounds like a happy ending, right? If only it were! All these elements boil up to a morose finale of almost worthy of the Grand Guignol.

Packed with a great cast, razor sharp dark humor, an acerbically satiric script, and crisp direction this movie was quiet the surprise. Highly recommended for those with a taste for the unique.