Slanted

Regal Theatres present Monday's Mystery Movie: Horror Edition (3/9). 

For just $5, fans gain access to a movie before its official release date, with the sole caveat being that the film remains a mystery to all until house lights are dimmed.

This week's film was revealed to be Slanted, starring Shirley Chen and Mckenna Grace. 

Warning: there are spoilers ahead.

Written and directed by Amy Wang, Slanted tells the story of an insecure Chinese-American girl who undergoes experimental ethnic modification surgery to appear white.

As the story progresses, our protagonist Joan Huang becomes Jo Hunt in an effort to gain peer acceptance and be voted Prom Queen -- to the exasperation of both her parents and best friend.

While there are elements of horror, specifically in the film's final scene as Joan frantically attempts to tear off her new face, it was tough as an audience member to shake the expectation of a horror film and adjust to this Disneyesque story about societal pressures.

"Is the horror film in the room with us?"

With that being said, Slanted features certain comedic elements that amuse at times and feel off-putting at others. The film serves as an uncomfortable commentary on both white privilege and the social media era, with a message that is the opposite of subtle.

As Joan's story unfolds, viewers watch a young Asian-American girl with posters of white celebrity women plastered on her walls progress from using phone filters to change her appearance to actually undergoing surgery simply to better fit in with her peers. 

Perhaps worst of all? The girl she is trying hardest to impress, Olivia, is revealed to be of Cuban descent -- she has also undergone experimental surgery to make a better life for herself.

During Joan's journey, characters sing and dance about how "it's good to be white", and a plethora of jokes are made around the benefits of erasing one's ethnicity. (Apparently, attending a Michael Bublé concert as a white person is a life-changing experience.)

Meanwhile, viewers also watch Joan's father struggle to make a living in America. Due to a slight language barrier and perceived cultural bias, he struggles to land work, and is forced to clean a rich white woman's house while enduring horrible treatment. 

My rating? 6 out of 10.

Although this film was not remotely what I was expecting to see in the Horror genre, it packs a strange punch of thought-provoking and on-the-nose content. 

There were countless people in my theatre laughing aloud as jokes landed, but isn't it depressing to consider the overarching message bearing more weight than a simple piece of entertainment?

What were your thoughts on Slanted? Feel free to leave a note in the comments below, let's discuss :)