{"id":19218,"date":"2022-01-24T19:30:36","date_gmt":"2022-01-24T19:30:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.horrifiedmagazine.co.uk\/?p=19218"},"modified":"2023-09-28T08:32:08","modified_gmt":"2023-09-28T08:32:08","slug":"ben-wheatley-in-the-earth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horrifiedmagazine.co.uk\/film\/ben-wheatley-in-the-earth\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding Meaning in Ben Wheatley\u2019s In The Earth (2021)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
Film<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Caitlyn Downs returns to the films of Ben Wheatley, this time exploring the search for meaning in his 2021 psychedelic folk horror, In The Earth…<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Ben Wheatley\u2019s horror offerings tend to contain a political, social and cultural point. I\u2019ve already written (some might say too much) on the role of aspirational masculine myth born of frustration with the \u2018real world\u2019 in Kill List<\/i><\/a> <\/strong>(2011).<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p> High-Rise <\/b><\/i>(2015), although an adaptation of an existing novel, is perhaps where this (small \u2018p) political sentiment is most clear, with the whole film echoing a class struggle in a chaotically decadent backdrop. A pivotal scene includes the voice of Margaret Thatcher, a clear indication of how her policies sought to inspire social mobility above all else, especially compassion. If you haven\u2019t seen <\/span>In The Earth<\/b><\/i> (2021) yet, stop reading here. Go check out <\/span>Andrew Pope\u2019s review<\/span><\/a> on the site and you can also listen to an episode of <\/span>Socially Distanced Cinema<\/span><\/a> I appeared on with Darren Gaskell to discuss the film without spoilers as far as is possible. There are also likely to be some plot details for other Ben Wheatley films, including <\/span>Kill List<\/b><\/i>, <\/span>Sightseers<\/b> <\/i>(2012), <\/span>High-Rise<\/b><\/i> and <\/span>A Field in England<\/b><\/i> (2013). In Wheatley\u2019s films, political dissatisfaction leads characters to pursue more esoteric meaning and structure.<\/span><\/p> Wheatley\u2019s horror always comes with a sense of self-discovery or search for meaning. <\/span>Kill List <\/b><\/i>has Jay find a destiny he never imagined in the wake of his dissatisfaction with being a modern man. <\/span>Sightseers<\/b> <\/i>has sheltered Tina (Alice Lowe) step out from one controlling environment into another one, discovering her own sense of freedom along the way. <\/span>High-Rise<\/b><\/i> has Laing (Tom Hiddleston) discover his place within the building and <\/span>A Field in England<\/i><\/strong> is a study of men fleeing a war they want no part of who are forced into another nightmare as a result. In <\/span>Free Fire<\/b><\/i>, <\/span>Down Terrace<\/b><\/i> and <\/span>A Field in England<\/b><\/i>, extended violence is disruptive, devastating and ultimately pointless. In all these films meaning is sought, resulting in physical and mental cost that ultimately, leads to the abandonment of meaning or purpose. With all that said, what does this mean for <\/span>In The Earth<\/b><\/i>? In essence, the film is a portrait of a situation in which everyone is in flux, battling a changed world around them. This is peak pandemic paranoia played out in the form of psychedelic eco-horror, reflective of the situation we all find ourselves in. Wheatley tells violent, effective shaggy dog stories. However, <\/span>In The Earth<\/i><\/b> is likely the first point that he has said this \u2018out loud\u2019.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> Pandemic projects are a tricky sell. There is not always the appetite to consume the media that explicitly references the situation, but projects that ignore it entirely also seem odd, especially with the need for distancing measures, limited casts and locations often having a very visible impact on film productions. The idea for <\/span>In The Earth<\/b><\/i> was conceived during the initial UK lockdown of March 2020, but shot a little later, albeit still under many restrictions. The film sidesteps the potentially thorny issue of the real pandemic by not naming it and making clear that the tests and restrictions are not for those we have seen in day to day life. The pandemic has brought huge challenges, be they personal, medical, social or cultural and it is no surprise to see that film, particularly the horror genre, has been quick to pick up on and exploit these anxieties. Of course, horror is usually seeking to explore the unsaid, taking the worst possible outcomes and playing them out on screen by way of catharsis.\u00a0<\/span><\/p> <\/span><\/p> I<\/span>n The Earth<\/b><\/i> functions as a kind of sensation-seeking move into the open, following the flatness and restrictions of lockdowns. That the film so leans on its hallucinogenic imagery and vivid soundscape, including a Clint Mansell soundtrack made in part from plant noise, is key in its desire to use every facility to move the audience, to fully impact them. The characters within the film are similarly sensation seeking, exploiting the use of industrial sound and light to move the natural world for their own means. One of the posters for the film urges viewers to TAKE THE TRIP and this really functions as an instruction for watching the film, abandoning the need to fully understand and just experience the journey.<\/span><\/p> Mycorrhiza is referenced early on – calling attention to the idea of everything working within a network for the betterment of all. Many eco concerns focus on our damage to the environment and the elements we continue to take from without replenishing. Mycorrhiza within <\/span>In The Earth<\/b><\/i> is used both in the terms of the crop network but also becomes a way to link the humans with the earth and also exploit the disparate nature of the humans, their distance from one another and how each one seeks to only further their own desires. <\/span>In The Earth<\/span><\/i> details how humans who have been faced with loss and chaos try to rebuild and reassert their own needs in the aftermath.<\/span><\/p>