Birdeater

Birdeater

A study of a toxic relationship that turns into a nightmare

You know you’re in for a no-holds-barred ride from the very first minutes. At least from the moment when a blurry poster of the 1971 Australian film “Wake in Fright” appears in one of the scenes. Albeit for the characters in The Bird Eater, this story starts innocently enough. After a three-year relationship, Louie wants to marry his beloved Irene. He invites her to his stag party which his mates arrange for him in the Australian wilderness. But nothing goes as planned. Louie and Irene’s relationship has a nice facade, but it has smelt stale for a long time. There is evil in Louie, and submissiveness in Irene. A trip out of town will make their friends realise this. A study of a toxic relationship will turn into a horror film and a fun booze party into a nightmare.

 ¨Birdeater¨ is a masterfully written and edited film. Not a scene is redundant, and every element fits perfectly. Jack Clark and Jim Weir, the debutants who co-wrote and co-directed the piece show us more than they tell us. The tension grows naturally and plays to the expectations of the audience, who expect something is about to explode, but have no idea how big it would be.

“Birdeater” is an excellent psychological thriller that, by using horror elements, depicts the normalisation of psychological violence, sexual abuse, and gaslighting. It uncovers the mechanisms of narcissists, real-life monsters who live in society, have friends and social lives, and easily get away with their actions for years.

The film premiered at the Sydney Film Festival. It also generated a lot of buzz during South by Southwest in Texas. Excellent roles were created by Mackenzie Fearnley as the repulsive Louie (whom you will feel like strangling with your bare hands during the screening) and Shabana Azeez as Irene.