Rent Darlin' (2019)

Very odd ... - Darlin' review by NP

This begins as an excellent, thoughtful horror film about a young feral girl taken in by a school for troubled teens. We’re presented with the undeniable possibility that in many ways, young Darlin’ (Lauryn Canny) might have been better off with her ferocious animal-like mother. Her ferocious, animal-like mother (Pollyanna McKintosh) has that impression too and is never far behind.

Written and directed by the ‘Woman’ star McKintosh (this is actually a sequel to that 2011 film, although isn’t really billed as such), this meandering story of outsiders, hypocrisy, social rank, vagaries of the establishment and (happily) of cannibalism slowly bleeds away into an odd mishmash of styles that are further and further removed from the style of the original.

To invite our sympathies with the waif, her antagonists are so outrageously cruel to her, and their cruelty laid on with no subtlety whatsoever, that the admirable message of the film is muddied somewhat.

As events unfold, it loses its way and the potential becomes fragmented and squandered, going from promising to bizarre to ridiculous. As you watch, you can feel the intrigue and horror drain away into pantomime silliness, and that’s a real shame. 4 out of 10.