M.F.A. has a series of murders in it, but it doesn’t have the atmosphere of a horror movie like I would usually review this time of year. I’d say it’s closer to a thriller. It came out in 2017, I’ve been meaning to see it for a while, and unfortunately I was reminded of it by current events. It’s a rape-revenge movie with more parallels to the recent Cornell University case than I expected, but of course it’s not coincidence – it’s a terrible reminder that this is based on things that happen all the time. I have to warn you that although I think this is a respectable movie and not sleazy like I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE it does have two very disturbing assault scenes, bluntly staged to seem authentic. It’s not sugar-coating it, or giving you a quick out. It’s very upsetting.
Noelle (Francesca Eastwood) is a painter working on her masters of fine arts. She’s cool, but not very social, trying to change that when she’s invited to a party by classmate Luke (Peter Vack, SWELTER). She has a very supportive duplex neighbor named Skye (Leah McKendrick, who also wrote the movie) who notices her trying on outfits and encourages her, gives her tips for hitting on the guy. It’s torturous because if we didn’t know the topic of the movie it would be cute. She likes a boy, she kinda wants to get laid, her friend has her back, none of that is a crime. She’s not worrying about bad things that could happen, and she shouldn’t have to. (read the rest of this shit…)
