This is an almost entirely single-handed, dialogue free, story of a woman who is taking (very basic) climate and wildlife data on an otherwise uninhabited island off the Cornish Coast. Clearly this has been a mining island in days gone by, with ruins and mine-workings strewn around the place and those exude a sort of creepiness that is only augmented by the constant wind and the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks. Her days are routine, to say the least, but gradually we start to realise that the island has been touched by tragedy - as has the woman (Mary Woodvine) herself. Auteur Mark Jenkin doesn't rush with this, but rather takes his time to slowly but surely allow us to put together some of the pieces of just what drew this woman to this isolated and lonely spot. It's that repetitive pacelessness that I struggled with. We see the same shots over and over again, the same procedures and scenarios and though there is a very incremental development of the plot, the whole thing just doesn't really move. It has the hallmarks of an original "Poldark" episode married with the "Dr. Who - Stones of Blood" series from 1978. To be fair, it has a very authentic 1973 feel to it, and the audio mixing coupled with some sparingly used visual effects do help create a very slight air of mystery and tragedy, but I found it all just a bit lacking. Worth a watch though, but I'm not sure I will watch it again.
59 Reviews
Sub par Lynch?
listofnames28 January 2023
I enjoyed Bait, Jenkins' previous film so I had an idea of his odd dated style. Bait had a much more conventional narrative whereas Enys men is very layered, rhythmic and dream-like. Things like linear time and space are almost blurred occasionally. This film is highly symbolic in an almost Lynchian sense. It's unsettling in a psychological way and not in a traditional horror sense. The horror is from everyday tragedy and the haunted memories this creates.
The film is unfortunately rather boring because of the highly repetitive nature of the same person doing the same boring routine day after day. What this film lacks is stylishness and modernity. Jenkins seems obsessed with the ordinary and mundane. There are several close-ups of seagulls flying, waves crashing, woman making tea, reading a book, over and over again..... But if all you show in your films in the ordinary mundanity of life then your films will be feel that way to the viewer. Slowly more unsettling/bizarre elements are fragmented into this bland everyday existence but it doesn't break up the dull pacing.
At least after the end of the film me and my friend felt compelled to question what it all had meant. What was the point of this symbolic image or that one.
The main theme seems to be about complex unresolved grief. Grief that haunts us over and over. Survivor's guilt - what we should have done to save the person but didn't do. However, there is something more complicated than one person's grief being explored here. There is a whole Island's worth of historical grief but it is unclear how that relates to the main character in the film.
I couldn't say I would recommend this film. Maybe someone more familiar with the type of grief it was exploring would get something more out of it.
The film is unfortunately rather boring because of the highly repetitive nature of the same person doing the same boring routine day after day. What this film lacks is stylishness and modernity. Jenkins seems obsessed with the ordinary and mundane. There are several close-ups of seagulls flying, waves crashing, woman making tea, reading a book, over and over again..... But if all you show in your films in the ordinary mundanity of life then your films will be feel that way to the viewer. Slowly more unsettling/bizarre elements are fragmented into this bland everyday existence but it doesn't break up the dull pacing.
At least after the end of the film me and my friend felt compelled to question what it all had meant. What was the point of this symbolic image or that one.
The main theme seems to be about complex unresolved grief. Grief that haunts us over and over. Survivor's guilt - what we should have done to save the person but didn't do. However, there is something more complicated than one person's grief being explored here. There is a whole Island's worth of historical grief but it is unclear how that relates to the main character in the film.
I couldn't say I would recommend this film. Maybe someone more familiar with the type of grief it was exploring would get something more out of it.
Emergent Storytelling
unzki21 January 2023
Seems most people either love it or dislike/hate it... I liked it but probably won't watch it again anytime soon. I don't have a clue about the regional legends, folktales or cultural markers the movie is said to reference.
What I do have is a lot of patience and quite a bit of imagination. It also helped that it was screened at a folk horror event so I had some context for it. Thus the film did keep my interest as I tried to piece together WTH was going on, and creating a story within my head as the movie went on. The atmosphere is eerie and the movie overall is experimentally interesting so I think the director is on to something, I'd just hope his next effort would be something where I don't have to create most of the story for myself.
Go see if you're ok with experimental, slow-paced stuff that doesn't offer you much answers.
Avoid if you want your horror with action and explanations, and have a low threshold for experimental stuff.
What I do have is a lot of patience and quite a bit of imagination. It also helped that it was screened at a folk horror event so I had some context for it. Thus the film did keep my interest as I tried to piece together WTH was going on, and creating a story within my head as the movie went on. The atmosphere is eerie and the movie overall is experimentally interesting so I think the director is on to something, I'd just hope his next effort would be something where I don't have to create most of the story for myself.
Go see if you're ok with experimental, slow-paced stuff that doesn't offer you much answers.
Avoid if you want your horror with action and explanations, and have a low threshold for experimental stuff.
A film in which nothing happens ... or does it? :)
ok_english_bt12 September 2023
Bit of a head-scratcher this one? Film maker Mark Jenkin deepens his unusual cinematic technique with budget experimental horror 'Enys Men'. His follow-up to 2019's breakout success 'Bait' also builds its abstract narrative with pictures rather than dialogue. Images are paraded as a series of 'semi-stills': a worried facial expression, a boiling kettle, a violent sea wave, the hostility of the elements, a distorted radio sound ... the Cornish writer/director's latest hints at action without apparently providing any!?
And that's the trick of it. 'Enys Men' works on a simple narrative device. The researcher played by Mary Woodvine in the story treads a familiar path each day wandering around this small uninhabited island ('Enys Men' is Cornish for 'Stone Island') she has made her home for the period as she studies a rare flower. We get to see the same pictures over and over, but things appear to alter as she loses her grip on reality ... or does she? Mishaps occur, people appear and disappear around her, but it's hard to tell if this is really happening?
So, the narrative in 'Enys Men' doesn't so much come together as fall off the wall like flakes of plaster ... miners stare up out of a mine shaft, the battered old sign marking a shipwreck down at the island's jetty hints at a tragedy years before, the strange 'appearances' of people to the researcher's vision, a priest, a young girl, a lover, the anxious voices on her radio trying to make contact ... hard to untangle all the 'threads' and decide what's real and what's imagined? Jenkin's earlier film 'Bait' had more conventional storylines, this one leaves us in mystery mode and with the feeling of impending doom. In other words, the film menaces and 'threatens' drama but opts to not to provide any?
The film ends as quietly and uneventfully as it begins. Folk horror works by entering our psyche, playing on our worst fears, frightening us. Jenkin uses 16mm film like in 'Bait' but without the 'box' screen. The film was made during Covid-19 lockdown under filming restrictions and the crew took it upon themselves to make a low-Carbon film. I scratch my head about it all, but feel shaken up by the end, so I think the film did its job. Jenkins will no doubt turn his lens on similar objects in the future, and apply the same techniques that mark him out as such an original film maker.
And that's the trick of it. 'Enys Men' works on a simple narrative device. The researcher played by Mary Woodvine in the story treads a familiar path each day wandering around this small uninhabited island ('Enys Men' is Cornish for 'Stone Island') she has made her home for the period as she studies a rare flower. We get to see the same pictures over and over, but things appear to alter as she loses her grip on reality ... or does she? Mishaps occur, people appear and disappear around her, but it's hard to tell if this is really happening?
So, the narrative in 'Enys Men' doesn't so much come together as fall off the wall like flakes of plaster ... miners stare up out of a mine shaft, the battered old sign marking a shipwreck down at the island's jetty hints at a tragedy years before, the strange 'appearances' of people to the researcher's vision, a priest, a young girl, a lover, the anxious voices on her radio trying to make contact ... hard to untangle all the 'threads' and decide what's real and what's imagined? Jenkin's earlier film 'Bait' had more conventional storylines, this one leaves us in mystery mode and with the feeling of impending doom. In other words, the film menaces and 'threatens' drama but opts to not to provide any?
The film ends as quietly and uneventfully as it begins. Folk horror works by entering our psyche, playing on our worst fears, frightening us. Jenkin uses 16mm film like in 'Bait' but without the 'box' screen. The film was made during Covid-19 lockdown under filming restrictions and the crew took it upon themselves to make a low-Carbon film. I scratch my head about it all, but feel shaken up by the end, so I think the film did its job. Jenkins will no doubt turn his lens on similar objects in the future, and apply the same techniques that mark him out as such an original film maker.
Insert Shrug Emoji Here...
Xstal1 May 2023
On an island there's a woman you will find, she has strange habits and she's losing most her mind, strange flowers keep her busy, cascading stones may make you dizzy, into a void that one assumes, was sometimes mined. She has a scar across her midriff from a cut, it went quite deep and nearly opened up her gut, along the mark she's growing lichen, perhaps she's rather over ripened, on the horizon, a strange rock protrudes and juts. On occasion she receives a man in boat, we find out later that he's buoyant and can float, although he clearly cannot swim, or make the most of his four limbs, as he's puffed up showing signs of a great bloat.
Imaginative stuff, but a little too abstract.
Imaginative stuff, but a little too abstract.
1 star reviews versus this movie: which are more pretentious?
brldlnew9 May 2023
Do people have a kink for watching a movie, not understanding it then going online to give it 1 star and say "I didn't understand it"?
It's a movie about a woman going crazy due to loneliness. What else do you need? A "wiki how" article?
Being serious now, this is a good piece of experimental cinema. Very well shot and the 16mm aesthethic is all there. Sound design is great and eerie, and the themes do play out nicely. We meet her, know how her work / daily life goes and see herself slowly getting affected by the loneliness when she is "visited" by ghostly manifestations of stuff she read or heard or lived before, like the dead fisherman, and earlier version of herself going through a traumatic event and even a bunch of nuns she saw in a dryed milk label. A strange monolith or gravestone becomes spooky, the bald dude is probably a ghost and the flowers are turning into mold and mold grows in dead things (see? Spooky)
There isn't much to say or hate here. The film is tremenduously repetitve but that's absolutely necessary to understand her condition. It does have some shots that I think confuse you more than help you understand it, and I'm lost on what the rock being throwing down the well even means. All in all, again, a good piece of experimental filmmaking.
I'm giving it 7 because I took one star out for each time I burst into sleep while watching.
It's a movie about a woman going crazy due to loneliness. What else do you need? A "wiki how" article?
Being serious now, this is a good piece of experimental cinema. Very well shot and the 16mm aesthethic is all there. Sound design is great and eerie, and the themes do play out nicely. We meet her, know how her work / daily life goes and see herself slowly getting affected by the loneliness when she is "visited" by ghostly manifestations of stuff she read or heard or lived before, like the dead fisherman, and earlier version of herself going through a traumatic event and even a bunch of nuns she saw in a dryed milk label. A strange monolith or gravestone becomes spooky, the bald dude is probably a ghost and the flowers are turning into mold and mold grows in dead things (see? Spooky)
There isn't much to say or hate here. The film is tremenduously repetitve but that's absolutely necessary to understand her condition. It does have some shots that I think confuse you more than help you understand it, and I'm lost on what the rock being throwing down the well even means. All in all, again, a good piece of experimental filmmaking.
I'm giving it 7 because I took one star out for each time I burst into sleep while watching.
Utterly frustrating and pointless
andy-963-1017339 February 2023
One reviewer here states, "I'm not about to reveal what the movie is about." Which is a great pity as I have absolutely no idea myself. I don't think I'm giving anything away when I say that it concerns a volunteer on an uninhabited island who is going a bit nuts - this much appears in every review. The problem with it is that there's no plot whatever. Yes, there is the vestige of a story. But for a movie that's classed as a 'horror film, it's a total failure because at no point is the viewer treated to any ramping up of tension. The protagonist barely exhibits any real concern at the number of solemn apparitions who pop up to gaze at her throwing a daily stone down a well. I'd have felt slightly more engaged if she became increasingly alarmed and desperate. But no, nothing. She even chats to one or two of them as if their appearance is perfectly natural. I realise that expressing dissatisfaction makes me sound like a terrible philistine. Perhaps I am, but I absolutely loved Jenkin' s previous movie, Bait, which had similarly fascinating, intense, retro cinematography. But Bait at least wove an engrossing narrative through the camerawork. Enys Men, for me, utterly fails in this department. Instead we have a series of film-school 'great shots' with no connecting narrative tissue. I left the cinema feeling deeply short-changed.
A defense
drownsoda9021 April 2023
Set in the spring of 1973, "Enys Men" follows a wildlife researcher documenting the growth of flowers on an isolated island off the coast of Cornwall, whose daily repetitive rituals slowly morph into a psychological (and possibly supernatural) nightmare.
There's really no way around it--this is certainly not a film where much "happens", and it is bound to frustrate viewers expecting a substantial payoff. You will not get it. However, there's also no way around arguing that "Enys Men" is utterly gorgeous from beginning to end. Shot on aged film stock, it is littered with scratches, lens flares, and enough textural grit to appease any self-respecting grindhouse aficionado. The island setting, riddled with stone ruins of an old settlement, is haunting and beautiful. Stylistically, it all comes together as a visual and thematic mashup of films such as "The Shining", Robert Altman's "Images", "Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles", and even "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre".
While some reviewers have asserted that the filmmakers have approached the material in a literary manner, the real narrative locus here is wholly visual, and the director presents a repetitious scattershot of images that make suggestions but demand the audience imagine the connective tissue themselves. There is less than a paragraph of dialogue throughout it, and the subtle visual nods to the island's historical background emerge perhaps more strongly than the character herself, rendering the film an immersive interpretive exercise for the audience that is engrossing but certainly not thrilling.
"Enys Men" unfurls itself slowly, beginning as a quiet meditation on a researcher's lonesome study of nature, before slowly descending into a nightmare world where the natural landscape, figments of the researcher's imagination and/or individuals from her past (including a young woman who obliquely appears alongside her, possibly a younger version of herself), and spectral figures connected to the island's history (miners, doomed mariners, and a priest) all collide into a perverse tapestry. Even milkmaids on a tin canister of dried milk in the kitchen come to life here.
While there is perhaps no tangible throughline in terms of narrative, I think the film succeeds as a twisted portrait of human isolation. As the researcher's rations and resources dwindle, nature and history begin to take over. Lichens grow on both the flowers she studies as well as on her body itself--the island's landscape, its ancient stone monolith, and the ghosts of its past, tighten their grip both mentally and physically. There's little relief and even less explanation, but an unshakeable ominous tone pervades from start to finish. It is certainly not a film that aims to traditionally entertain, but it is one to get lost in--or consumed by. 8/10.
There's really no way around it--this is certainly not a film where much "happens", and it is bound to frustrate viewers expecting a substantial payoff. You will not get it. However, there's also no way around arguing that "Enys Men" is utterly gorgeous from beginning to end. Shot on aged film stock, it is littered with scratches, lens flares, and enough textural grit to appease any self-respecting grindhouse aficionado. The island setting, riddled with stone ruins of an old settlement, is haunting and beautiful. Stylistically, it all comes together as a visual and thematic mashup of films such as "The Shining", Robert Altman's "Images", "Jeanne Dielman, 23 quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles", and even "The Texas Chain Saw Massacre".
While some reviewers have asserted that the filmmakers have approached the material in a literary manner, the real narrative locus here is wholly visual, and the director presents a repetitious scattershot of images that make suggestions but demand the audience imagine the connective tissue themselves. There is less than a paragraph of dialogue throughout it, and the subtle visual nods to the island's historical background emerge perhaps more strongly than the character herself, rendering the film an immersive interpretive exercise for the audience that is engrossing but certainly not thrilling.
"Enys Men" unfurls itself slowly, beginning as a quiet meditation on a researcher's lonesome study of nature, before slowly descending into a nightmare world where the natural landscape, figments of the researcher's imagination and/or individuals from her past (including a young woman who obliquely appears alongside her, possibly a younger version of herself), and spectral figures connected to the island's history (miners, doomed mariners, and a priest) all collide into a perverse tapestry. Even milkmaids on a tin canister of dried milk in the kitchen come to life here.
While there is perhaps no tangible throughline in terms of narrative, I think the film succeeds as a twisted portrait of human isolation. As the researcher's rations and resources dwindle, nature and history begin to take over. Lichens grow on both the flowers she studies as well as on her body itself--the island's landscape, its ancient stone monolith, and the ghosts of its past, tighten their grip both mentally and physically. There's little relief and even less explanation, but an unshakeable ominous tone pervades from start to finish. It is certainly not a film that aims to traditionally entertain, but it is one to get lost in--or consumed by. 8/10.
Nothing has changed.
Rayve77723 April 2023
An extremely interesting watch, with some absolutely incredible cinematography, sound design, and editing. Enys Men's story is where things can be extremely alienating to a lot of people, especially if you aren't very familiar with experimental film, as it is extremely sparse, favoring environmental and visual storytelling over dialogue and plot.
To me, it was very effective, although others may vehemently disagree. Because of this choice, there is still quite a bit about this film that I just simply don't understand, but I think I have a basic understanding of what Mark Jenkins is trying to show us. This disconnect might have to do with the fact that Enys Men is extremely rooted in Cornish culture, so if you're from Cornwall or are familiar with Cornish folklore, you might get more out of it than an American.
In terms of it being marketed as a "horror movie", I will say that I was never really scared by anything shown, a lot of shots and moments were quite unsettling, such as the growing moss on the lead character's body.
To me, it was very effective, although others may vehemently disagree. Because of this choice, there is still quite a bit about this film that I just simply don't understand, but I think I have a basic understanding of what Mark Jenkins is trying to show us. This disconnect might have to do with the fact that Enys Men is extremely rooted in Cornish culture, so if you're from Cornwall or are familiar with Cornish folklore, you might get more out of it than an American.
In terms of it being marketed as a "horror movie", I will say that I was never really scared by anything shown, a lot of shots and moments were quite unsettling, such as the growing moss on the lead character's body.
When a director wants to be a writer
jimbowclock24 October 2022
Enys Men has beautiful shots, great zooms, interesting atmosphere, and an unsettling tone. But what do you get when you have beautiful shots, great zooms, and interesting atmosphere without a full story? You have great pictures. You wanna make great pictures? Become a photographer. These great filmmaking attributes do not add up to anything without a story. And yes, I know there's a ghost story here....but barely. And it's 100% based on sumbol and metaphor. Never go full metaphor. Why am I supposed to care? I love experimental films. Persona is one of the greatest movies ever made, but there's so many layers and depth to the characters and ideas that we are exploring on top of the abstract filmmaking. Mark Jenkin shows here that he can direct. But he also shows he doesn't know how to write. If he can figure that out, he could make something worth while.
This is a mood piece
mathewhaine24 January 2023
This is mostly a response to these depressing reviews. Have you never watched a moody film before?
You should already know from Bait that Jenkin is an experimental filmmaker. It's an unconventional film which is about experiencing a mood and atmosphere. The film won't spoon feed you the same storytelling tropes you've already seen a million times before, so if that makes a film "bad" to you then stay away. Don't try to understand it, just watch it.
I much preferred this to Bait. I liked the sound design, the blurring of nightmare and reality and the body horror elements.
What's he got against lichen, though?
You should already know from Bait that Jenkin is an experimental filmmaker. It's an unconventional film which is about experiencing a mood and atmosphere. The film won't spoon feed you the same storytelling tropes you've already seen a million times before, so if that makes a film "bad" to you then stay away. Don't try to understand it, just watch it.
I much preferred this to Bait. I liked the sound design, the blurring of nightmare and reality and the body horror elements.
What's he got against lichen, though?
Journey into Madness and Isolation
Reviews_of_the_Dead17 April 2023
Warning: Spoilers
This is a movie that I saw part of the trailer and knew that I was going to go to the Gateway Film Center to see. My sister was in town and she came with me. What was another selling point was that Duncan from the Podcast Under the Stairs liked it so that was another thing in its favor. Despite what I've shared, I didn't necessarily know what I was getting here. During a week when I didn't have rewatch available, I decided to go around with this one a second time.
Synopsis: set in 1973 on an uninhabited island off the Cornish coast, a wildlife volunteer's daily observation of a rare flower turn into a metaphysical journey that forces her as well as the viewer to question what is real and what is a nightmare.
That is a great way to describe this movie. Our volunteer is played by Mary Woodvine. We see her over days as she goes about her routine. It is seeing this flower that is near the coast. She takes the temperature of the soil and notes if there are any changes. This goes on for a while as well. She also goes to an old mine shaft and drops a rock down it. What I'm gathering is that this island used to have a mining operation, but that closed up.
Her days are the same. She returns home, notes what happened in a journal. She has a generator that she uses, but limited fuel for it. This powers her short wave radio that she uses to communicate with the team that brings her supplies. We see this run when he brings more gas and food. This sailor is played by Edward Rowe. She also uses electricity to power another radio to listen to music.
There is finally a change that comes over the flower. Lichen seems to be growing on it. This isn't the only place this fungus seems to be growing. Much like the synopsis set up, we don't know what she is experiencing or thinks that she is. It truly becomes a nightmare of hallucinations and events of the past that led her to where she is today.
That is where I'll leave my recap to the movie and introducing our lead character. We have a few others, but I'll get into them shortly. Where I want to start is that I'm not entirely sure what I saw. My sister said the same thing as well. Let me start with the positives.
My favorite part are the visuals. This movie was made on film as there is a grainy look. This can be simulated, but it doesn't feel like a filter. If it is, kudos to them. The cinematography is amazing though in setting up the isolation that the volunteer is going through. What I found interesting there is that it sets up what she does is boring. She does the same things every day, almost like us when we go to our job. The problem here is that she is alone. Her only interactions being over the radio. She does have another type of radio to listen to music to help break things up. Being alone with your thoughts this long can lead to what I'll go into next. Seeing how bleak this place is and the isolation is good. I also thought that how things are edited were solid. That plays up the hallucinations and makes you question what is real or not. I'd also say that the sound design here is amazing. This is just well-made. It also brings vibes of folk horror as well.
Where I'll then go is what I was alluding to, what happens to this volunteer on the island. I take it that due to her isolation and for how long she is there, she goes crazy. There is also the possibility that the lichen growing on the flowers could be causing her to hallucinate. There was an interesting angle here where I wonder if there was time travel. We hear over the radio about Enys Men. Thanks to Duncan chatting with Mark Jenkin, the writer/director, this is the name of the island. There was a group of miners that were trapped in the past. That would explain why she sees a miner played by Joe Gray. There was another tragedy about a boat that crashed, sharing the same name as the one that the sailor uses. By the end, I don't think that is the case. I think there are different elements that are in her subconscious that are part of her hallucinations. They are being incorporated in.
There are other elements as well. I understood who the girl the volunteer sees is. This girl is played by Flo Crowe. There is also a preacher, played by John Woodvine, as well as a couple of groups. One is made of children and the other of women. I know the latter is from a cannister, with the brand using a logo of the old-timey women. The other seems like a cult of children of who follow a pagan religion. This plays back in with the folk horror aspects that our writer/director grew up with. During that interview, he said he didn't even realize he incorporated things that stuck with him all these years. Now these things we see aren't fully explained, but it does make for the eerie atmosphere we get. I should say that the acting is good. Woodvine carries it mostly, but Rowe, Crowe, John Woodvine, Gray and the rest are solid as well.
Now I do need to shift over to a negative. This movie is slow. I know that part of that is by design. This sucks you in with the repetitive nature of her task. Things then start to get odd and that ramps up until we get to the full-blown nightmare. I enjoyed coming on this ride, but I do think there are those that will not agree with there. This also makes the movie hard to talk about since it is more of an experience.
In conclusion, this is an odd film. I apologize for being repetitive, but this is one that you need to experience. Relaying what you see doesn't carry the same effect. We are seeing a fever dream play out where we don't know what is real or a nightmare. I did enjoy that. It does well in building the atmosphere with the images and the sound design. The acting is solid for what was needed. If I have an issue here, it is a bit slow. Now because of that, I can't recommend this to everyone. I do think this is worth a watch if you want to see something a bit more avant-garde.
My Rating: 7 out of 10.
Synopsis: set in 1973 on an uninhabited island off the Cornish coast, a wildlife volunteer's daily observation of a rare flower turn into a metaphysical journey that forces her as well as the viewer to question what is real and what is a nightmare.
That is a great way to describe this movie. Our volunteer is played by Mary Woodvine. We see her over days as she goes about her routine. It is seeing this flower that is near the coast. She takes the temperature of the soil and notes if there are any changes. This goes on for a while as well. She also goes to an old mine shaft and drops a rock down it. What I'm gathering is that this island used to have a mining operation, but that closed up.
Her days are the same. She returns home, notes what happened in a journal. She has a generator that she uses, but limited fuel for it. This powers her short wave radio that she uses to communicate with the team that brings her supplies. We see this run when he brings more gas and food. This sailor is played by Edward Rowe. She also uses electricity to power another radio to listen to music.
There is finally a change that comes over the flower. Lichen seems to be growing on it. This isn't the only place this fungus seems to be growing. Much like the synopsis set up, we don't know what she is experiencing or thinks that she is. It truly becomes a nightmare of hallucinations and events of the past that led her to where she is today.
That is where I'll leave my recap to the movie and introducing our lead character. We have a few others, but I'll get into them shortly. Where I want to start is that I'm not entirely sure what I saw. My sister said the same thing as well. Let me start with the positives.
My favorite part are the visuals. This movie was made on film as there is a grainy look. This can be simulated, but it doesn't feel like a filter. If it is, kudos to them. The cinematography is amazing though in setting up the isolation that the volunteer is going through. What I found interesting there is that it sets up what she does is boring. She does the same things every day, almost like us when we go to our job. The problem here is that she is alone. Her only interactions being over the radio. She does have another type of radio to listen to music to help break things up. Being alone with your thoughts this long can lead to what I'll go into next. Seeing how bleak this place is and the isolation is good. I also thought that how things are edited were solid. That plays up the hallucinations and makes you question what is real or not. I'd also say that the sound design here is amazing. This is just well-made. It also brings vibes of folk horror as well.
Where I'll then go is what I was alluding to, what happens to this volunteer on the island. I take it that due to her isolation and for how long she is there, she goes crazy. There is also the possibility that the lichen growing on the flowers could be causing her to hallucinate. There was an interesting angle here where I wonder if there was time travel. We hear over the radio about Enys Men. Thanks to Duncan chatting with Mark Jenkin, the writer/director, this is the name of the island. There was a group of miners that were trapped in the past. That would explain why she sees a miner played by Joe Gray. There was another tragedy about a boat that crashed, sharing the same name as the one that the sailor uses. By the end, I don't think that is the case. I think there are different elements that are in her subconscious that are part of her hallucinations. They are being incorporated in.
There are other elements as well. I understood who the girl the volunteer sees is. This girl is played by Flo Crowe. There is also a preacher, played by John Woodvine, as well as a couple of groups. One is made of children and the other of women. I know the latter is from a cannister, with the brand using a logo of the old-timey women. The other seems like a cult of children of who follow a pagan religion. This plays back in with the folk horror aspects that our writer/director grew up with. During that interview, he said he didn't even realize he incorporated things that stuck with him all these years. Now these things we see aren't fully explained, but it does make for the eerie atmosphere we get. I should say that the acting is good. Woodvine carries it mostly, but Rowe, Crowe, John Woodvine, Gray and the rest are solid as well.
Now I do need to shift over to a negative. This movie is slow. I know that part of that is by design. This sucks you in with the repetitive nature of her task. Things then start to get odd and that ramps up until we get to the full-blown nightmare. I enjoyed coming on this ride, but I do think there are those that will not agree with there. This also makes the movie hard to talk about since it is more of an experience.
In conclusion, this is an odd film. I apologize for being repetitive, but this is one that you need to experience. Relaying what you see doesn't carry the same effect. We are seeing a fever dream play out where we don't know what is real or a nightmare. I did enjoy that. It does well in building the atmosphere with the images and the sound design. The acting is solid for what was needed. If I have an issue here, it is a bit slow. Now because of that, I can't recommend this to everyone. I do think this is worth a watch if you want to see something a bit more avant-garde.
My Rating: 7 out of 10.
Sorry Mark.
benprichardsdotcom21 January 2023
I watched this in a quite full small cinema in Blaenau Ffestiniog. I live horror, love independent cinema and really love independent British cinema.
However my goodwill can't detract from this one being a bit of a pretentious stinker. As an aside I hope 'Bait' isn't like 'Enys Men'.
I just could not get into it. This might have something to do with having to sit through half an hours worth of abstract art-film beforehand. But regardless, the story, the motivation of 'Enys Men' is completely shrouded in unnecessary mystery. Yes, to give it its due the viewing was incredibly intense, almost unbearable but without any payoff. The ending doesn't tie up the loose ends, which I quite like as a narratorial device but frustrated me on this occasion.
However my goodwill can't detract from this one being a bit of a pretentious stinker. As an aside I hope 'Bait' isn't like 'Enys Men'.
I just could not get into it. This might have something to do with having to sit through half an hours worth of abstract art-film beforehand. But regardless, the story, the motivation of 'Enys Men' is completely shrouded in unnecessary mystery. Yes, to give it its due the viewing was incredibly intense, almost unbearable but without any payoff. The ending doesn't tie up the loose ends, which I quite like as a narratorial device but frustrated me on this occasion.
More like a piece of art
discoandrollerskates30 July 2023
.. than a movie. I mean, it's stunningly beautiful. But also a bit boring. I didn't really get the plot. It is not a horror movie, because it lacks a plot. It is beautiful and you have to be in the right mood to appreciate it. Like watching an art film at some museum. There are so many questions left. I like movies with double entendres and lingering questions, but this one is far too ill-defined. I didn't get the woman either. She is so strangely void of feelings. She feels very distant. I wanted to know more about her. But there are no clues to why she acts like she does. I never got what had happened before on the island. It has been compared to the masterpiece Wickerman but Wickerman has clear plot, it is haunting and, yeas, if you will, some kind of horror movie, not the mainstream kind of course. This one? Boring, distant, easy on the eye, a little bit interesting but far to vague.
Not a patch on Bait
matthewgrahamlee22 January 2023
An infuriatingly dull and frustrating watch which seems to hint at lots of interesting ideas that don't develop in any way. I loved bait and while this uses a similar aesthetic it lacks anything approaching a story, character development or depth. It's also mind numbingly repetitive.
I see other reviews saying that people might not "get" what this film is really about or saying. If that's the case then gods sake please enlighten us on what there is to understand rather than smugly pontificating. I feel like in reality it's not a lot. And if it requires some prior understanding of 'Cornish culture' to understand what's going on then sorry, I don't realise I had to revise before I watched it.
I see other reviews saying that people might not "get" what this film is really about or saying. If that's the case then gods sake please enlighten us on what there is to understand rather than smugly pontificating. I feel like in reality it's not a lot. And if it requires some prior understanding of 'Cornish culture' to understand what's going on then sorry, I don't realise I had to revise before I watched it.
The absolute definition of unclassifiable.
Lomax34323 January 2023
This is a strange film, but strange in a good way.
An unnamed volunteer lives alone on a Cornish island, her only job, seemingly, being to record the well-being of a small clump of peculiar flowers. This takes about five minutes a day. The rest of the time she wanders the island, drops a stone ritually down well (or is it a mine shaft?) and reads a book that proclaims that, after you've finished it, nothing will ever be the same.
The only other "inhabitant" of the island is a standing stone, on which the camera lingers lovingly.
On one level it's a study of loneliness ("But I'm not alone," she says, in one of the few lines of dialogue), on the other it's a journey of self-discovery as the past, present and future collide in - one assumes - the volunteer's head.
There are many clues - some more subtle than others (the brass memorial plaque, the red and yellow waterproofs, the fact the the sea seems to be flowing backwards at one point) - but nothing is spelled out. The number seven is important, too. She hallucinates seven children, seven women, seven miners, seven seamen, all of which add to the sense of unease.
This is a deeply unsettling film; the fact that it refuses to be unambiguous means that the only meaning is the one each viewer takes from it. It's a film that will stay in the memory for a very long time.
An unnamed volunteer lives alone on a Cornish island, her only job, seemingly, being to record the well-being of a small clump of peculiar flowers. This takes about five minutes a day. The rest of the time she wanders the island, drops a stone ritually down well (or is it a mine shaft?) and reads a book that proclaims that, after you've finished it, nothing will ever be the same.
The only other "inhabitant" of the island is a standing stone, on which the camera lingers lovingly.
On one level it's a study of loneliness ("But I'm not alone," she says, in one of the few lines of dialogue), on the other it's a journey of self-discovery as the past, present and future collide in - one assumes - the volunteer's head.
There are many clues - some more subtle than others (the brass memorial plaque, the red and yellow waterproofs, the fact the the sea seems to be flowing backwards at one point) - but nothing is spelled out. The number seven is important, too. She hallucinates seven children, seven women, seven miners, seven seamen, all of which add to the sense of unease.
This is a deeply unsettling film; the fact that it refuses to be unambiguous means that the only meaning is the one each viewer takes from it. It's a film that will stay in the memory for a very long time.
Women starts generator, then writes in notebook.
surgicalruckus18 October 2022
As a part of my Telluride Horror Show experience I thought this might be an interesting, thought provoking delve into the mind of the isolated. Instead for literally 52 minutes i watched a boring nature documentary in which someone forgot to put the voiceover in. I ended up walking out after an hour in which the film maker provided nothing to keep me even the slightest bit interested. I was not the first nor the the last to walk out. However, i don't know how the last 23 minutes of this film could have saved it from being the boring, pretentious, slog of random scenes that i saw. If you want to watch a women start a generator 8 to 10 times you're in luck. If dropping rocks down a well is your jam oh boy do i have a movie for you, otherwise skip this film.
Fascinating experimental film with wonderful sense of place
duncplus3 February 2023
Many reviewers are describing Enys Men as a folk horror film. This is sort of correct, but is also likely to lead viewers to approach the film with expectations that will not be met. This is an experimental film with little overt plot. Perhaps it's an abstraction of folk horror, or maybe just a film that uses some folk horror techniques.
The camera work goes from breathtaking panoramas to the smallest details: cracks in rocks, lichen, gorse, gulls. The sound design is thoughtful, powerful and central to the film. Both together capture such a strong sense of place, making Enys Men very immersive.
The story does not explain itself or resolve in a clear way. Some people will find this frustrating. Indeed, I found it frustrating at first, because I had gone into the cinema expecting a folk horror movie with the fairly standard tropes and story arc of the genre. But that's not what this is.
This film is experimental, slow, and leaves you plenty of space for interpretation. To me, it's a film about the power of place, our connection with the past, ritual, and grief. I'd really recommend this fascinating and unusual film, just try to leave your genre expectations behind!
The camera work goes from breathtaking panoramas to the smallest details: cracks in rocks, lichen, gorse, gulls. The sound design is thoughtful, powerful and central to the film. Both together capture such a strong sense of place, making Enys Men very immersive.
The story does not explain itself or resolve in a clear way. Some people will find this frustrating. Indeed, I found it frustrating at first, because I had gone into the cinema expecting a folk horror movie with the fairly standard tropes and story arc of the genre. But that's not what this is.
This film is experimental, slow, and leaves you plenty of space for interpretation. To me, it's a film about the power of place, our connection with the past, ritual, and grief. I'd really recommend this fascinating and unusual film, just try to leave your genre expectations behind!
Dear Non-niche audience, do yourself a favour and stay away!
SoumikBanerjee19964 October 2023
As this execution is heavily dependent on subtly inducted symbolisms as well as people's varying interpretations (to some degree), I am afraid the large majority of the audience would not be able to establish any personal connection to the narrative, let alone comprehend what truly lies in the untreated depths of the same.
Even as someone who regularly delves into niche pieces of fiction, I struggled to mark out their true intention or what the makers wanted to convey here. Although in the end, fortunately, I did manage to figure it out, except for a handful of things that remain unclear!
On a side note, I loved the mesmeric beauty of the location, albeit the film forced me to re-evaluate my wish to settle down in such places after retirement. The thought of being left all alone on a segregated island with limited supplies doesn't offer me enough encouragement to entertain my appetite anymore, I suppose.
Even as someone who regularly delves into niche pieces of fiction, I struggled to mark out their true intention or what the makers wanted to convey here. Although in the end, fortunately, I did manage to figure it out, except for a handful of things that remain unclear!
On a side note, I loved the mesmeric beauty of the location, albeit the film forced me to re-evaluate my wish to settle down in such places after retirement. The thought of being left all alone on a segregated island with limited supplies doesn't offer me enough encouragement to entertain my appetite anymore, I suppose.
Well, I Have My First Movie for My Worst of 2023 List
brentsbulletinboard2 April 2023
Well, I'll say this much about this one - I already have one of my movies for my worst films of 2023 list. Writer-director Mark Jenkin's so-called horror offering is an absolute mess almost from the very beginning. Set in 1973, this "story" of a wildlife volunteer's study of a rare flower that grows on an uninhabited island off the coast of Cornwall thrusts the curious but bewildered protagonist (Mary Woodvine) into a surrealistic metaphysical odyssey in which she struggles to determine what's real and what isn't. Of course, the problem with that premise is that the viewer is saddled with the same task and likely won't have much more luck at this than the puzzled environmentalist. The bizarre mixture of imagery, from the wildly imaginative to the everyday mundane and everything in between, is undoubtedly stylish and may be modestly appealing to look at (especially with its skillfully crafted 1970s style of camera work, film editing and intentionally grainy image quality), but there's an utter lack of focus that keeps audience members at arm's length (whether intentionally or not) and never provides any kind of meaningful hook with which to engage them. And what the filmmaker supposedly passes off as horror is anything but. Horror is supposed to frighten and shock viewers, not put them to sleep, which is what this picture increasingly does the further one gets into it. Instead of chills and thrills, the picture is interminably boring, eventually becoming cryptic, confusing and downright laughable. I can't recall how many times I found myself rhetorically asking, "What the hell is supposed to be going on here?" Admittedly, Jenkin is, laudably, an experimental filmmaker, and his supporters have staunchly (yet ultimately euphemistically) referred to this work as a "mood piece." Frankly, however, I find that a pretentious way of describing what amounts to an amateurish, directionless exercise that plays more like an out-of-control student film project on steroids than a serious piece of cinema. If you're really and truly up for something atmospheric that delivers the goods and provides a satisfyingly insightful narrative, there are plenty of other better offerings out there, such as the recently release Dutch production, "Splendid Isolation" (2022). You'll feel much more fulfilled and entertained by those pictures - and you'll probably stay awake for them, too.
A work of genius
tharoldgraham19 January 2023
To fully understand this movie, you need to understand Cornwall or at least know a little about it.
Every shot means something, down to the birds which feature in the film. The choughs, the gulls, the gorse, the celebration of Cala Me, the Bal Maidens, the Cornish language heard in parts, the miners, the men who work on the sea, the sea and cliff scapes, Methodism, the menhir itself, the occasional radio music featuring the late, great Brenda Wootton, amongst many other things.
It would be pointless trying to explain it to Americans - unless they are of Cornish ancestry - or people from up in England.
Indeed, there has been much hilarity locally when the question is asked, 'Where is Enys Men, the island?" As one local wit put it, just westwards of Porthemmet and you need to be Cornish to understand that response.
One thing is for sure, this movie has packed out cinemas on showing after showing, particularly in places where the Cornish diaspora have settled and also in other Celtic places.
I'm not about to reveal what the movie is about. Watch it and use your imagination. This is not an 'in your face' Amercian movie. No. This is something much deeper that requires thought.
Every shot means something, down to the birds which feature in the film. The choughs, the gulls, the gorse, the celebration of Cala Me, the Bal Maidens, the Cornish language heard in parts, the miners, the men who work on the sea, the sea and cliff scapes, Methodism, the menhir itself, the occasional radio music featuring the late, great Brenda Wootton, amongst many other things.
It would be pointless trying to explain it to Americans - unless they are of Cornish ancestry - or people from up in England.
Indeed, there has been much hilarity locally when the question is asked, 'Where is Enys Men, the island?" As one local wit put it, just westwards of Porthemmet and you need to be Cornish to understand that response.
One thing is for sure, this movie has packed out cinemas on showing after showing, particularly in places where the Cornish diaspora have settled and also in other Celtic places.
I'm not about to reveal what the movie is about. Watch it and use your imagination. This is not an 'in your face' Amercian movie. No. This is something much deeper that requires thought.
Best moment. The slug. Worst moment, the rest of the film.
hannaholly2 February 2023
Warning: Spoilers
My first time visiting the British Film Institute, looking forward to the promise of beautiful Cornish scenery, I knew within minutes I would be disappointed.
Disappointed was the apex, it went downhill from there. The film didn't have a narrative - or plot - so neither will my review. Here are the 'clues' 1970s grainy film 'style' Plastic prop flowers Woman with no taste in music starts generator Woman makes lists Woman runs out of tea Generator runs out of petrol Stereotypical Cornish visions Monolith knocks on door Red coat, yellow coat The end.
Probably the worst film I've ever seen - save your sanity and watch a kettle boil instead. Oh wait, that's in the film too.
Disappointed was the apex, it went downhill from there. The film didn't have a narrative - or plot - so neither will my review. Here are the 'clues' 1970s grainy film 'style' Plastic prop flowers Woman with no taste in music starts generator Woman makes lists Woman runs out of tea Generator runs out of petrol Stereotypical Cornish visions Monolith knocks on door Red coat, yellow coat The end.
Probably the worst film I've ever seen - save your sanity and watch a kettle boil instead. Oh wait, that's in the film too.
No joke - perhaps the worst film I've ever seen
gethinjenkinsjones19 January 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I was really hyped for Enys Men - I've spent some of my life in Cornwall, I studied as an ecologist, and I'm a movie fan who knows the basics of good storytelling. What this film turned out to be however was one of the most pretentious pieces of crap I've ever seen - no distinct plot, no character journey and no recognisable themes. Just a consistently mentally unstable woman on an island with random crap happening (such as a confusing focus on a big rock, lichen, and random shots of historic Cornish people) with absolutely no context.
The woman should have started the film as a completely ordinary human, and then we see her slowly lose her mind after being cut off from society. Getting stuck on an island is a good premise and the film could have delved into some really interesting themes - such as our largely unappreciated evolutionary need for others throughout our lives, or perhaps if the film was set in the present day and the technology and infrastructure breaks down the themes could have been our dependence on smart tech and society's inexperience surviving in nature. (Maybe it could have been set during the height of the pandemic which would justify not being able to be rescued).
Nothing felt earned. No matter how hard the dramatic music was trying to make me feel something, throughout I felt empty. This feeling was also shared with the two mates I saw this with, and I feel the director needs to go back to education so he can learn what makes effective storytelling.
The woman should have started the film as a completely ordinary human, and then we see her slowly lose her mind after being cut off from society. Getting stuck on an island is a good premise and the film could have delved into some really interesting themes - such as our largely unappreciated evolutionary need for others throughout our lives, or perhaps if the film was set in the present day and the technology and infrastructure breaks down the themes could have been our dependence on smart tech and society's inexperience surviving in nature. (Maybe it could have been set during the height of the pandemic which would justify not being able to be rescued).
Nothing felt earned. No matter how hard the dramatic music was trying to make me feel something, throughout I felt empty. This feeling was also shared with the two mates I saw this with, and I feel the director needs to go back to education so he can learn what makes effective storytelling.
All atmosphere
leobardolouisrodriguez1 April 2023
I completely agree with another reviewer; this movie has some beautiful shots, almost hypnotic, really. If there was one thing I wanted MORE of when it came to Enys Men, it was time with the waves crashing against the rocks. But this kind of imagery--with a bird, with lichen, with a flower, with more lichen, oh, a bird again--went on and on and on. It was a movie that was pure symbol, with no narrative.
It was like one long metaphor without any reference point. There's not really a character for the movie to let you explore. Was she losing her mind? Maybe. Was this island caught in some sort of temporal anomaly? I mean, maybe! All I know is, the only thing I can tell you for certain about the woman is that she wears a red jacket and monitors some flowers on an island that has tragic histories.
All atmosphere, to the point of extreme boredom. I would be interested to see what the director does with more structure and an actual story.
It was like one long metaphor without any reference point. There's not really a character for the movie to let you explore. Was she losing her mind? Maybe. Was this island caught in some sort of temporal anomaly? I mean, maybe! All I know is, the only thing I can tell you for certain about the woman is that she wears a red jacket and monitors some flowers on an island that has tragic histories.
All atmosphere, to the point of extreme boredom. I would be interested to see what the director does with more structure and an actual story.
A Beautiful Film About Ghosts
thalassafischer16 August 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Enys Men is a stunningly beautiful film shot in the style of Peter Weir's Picnic at Hanging Rock from 1975, though the film is set in 1973 it shares similar cinematography and themes, though less of a coherent narrative - yet just as much metaphysical mystery and awe of Earth itself.
A middle aged woman of about 50 is alone on an island observing lichen and some sort of species of flower that is only found in one particular area of the island where she takes temperature reports and writes observations daily. The opening scenes are idyllic, at least to my mind as a nature lover, full of blissful days of relaxed solitude passing as work.
Slowly the woman begins to have visions of a teenaged ghost I believe to be her daughter. Since the film is set in 1973 there is no way the girl in the film is her younger self, she's clearly got the orthodontic accoutrements found well after the 1940s as well as late 1960s or early 70s clothing. Although for a significant stretch of the film it seemed to simply be memories, and that is what is so surreal about the film, is that the main character seems to be haunted by her own past ...but also clearly by earlier inhabitants of the island.
She is joined by children in Medieval garb chanting musically in Cornish or Gaelic, a group of ladies in 1600s pilgrim dresses marching purposefully towards the sea on repeat, some miners who appear to have died in the underground caves sometime in the 1800s, and a fundamentalist pastor who I would guess was from either the 1600 or 1700s (at one point accompanied by a baby). On Wikipedia there's all kinds of speculation that these people are her father or former lover and it's perfectly clear to me she's seeing the ghosts of people who came before her who are making themselves known in the quiet and isolation - possibly due to the woman's morbid fixation on her own dead daughter.
To me this film felt legit how ghostly or supernatural experiences really are. Half dreamed, half experienced, half heard, half imagined. The woman appears to possibly have sleep paralysis at one point, which could also explain her visions, including seeing herself walk around the area. She even appears to have a premonition that the man who delivers her supplies and petrol will die in a storm before he does. I do not think the sexual fantasy she has about him indicates a prior relationship, just her own loneliness as a woman on an island probably only seeing him as the only man for months on end.
A middle aged woman of about 50 is alone on an island observing lichen and some sort of species of flower that is only found in one particular area of the island where she takes temperature reports and writes observations daily. The opening scenes are idyllic, at least to my mind as a nature lover, full of blissful days of relaxed solitude passing as work.
Slowly the woman begins to have visions of a teenaged ghost I believe to be her daughter. Since the film is set in 1973 there is no way the girl in the film is her younger self, she's clearly got the orthodontic accoutrements found well after the 1940s as well as late 1960s or early 70s clothing. Although for a significant stretch of the film it seemed to simply be memories, and that is what is so surreal about the film, is that the main character seems to be haunted by her own past ...but also clearly by earlier inhabitants of the island.
She is joined by children in Medieval garb chanting musically in Cornish or Gaelic, a group of ladies in 1600s pilgrim dresses marching purposefully towards the sea on repeat, some miners who appear to have died in the underground caves sometime in the 1800s, and a fundamentalist pastor who I would guess was from either the 1600 or 1700s (at one point accompanied by a baby). On Wikipedia there's all kinds of speculation that these people are her father or former lover and it's perfectly clear to me she's seeing the ghosts of people who came before her who are making themselves known in the quiet and isolation - possibly due to the woman's morbid fixation on her own dead daughter.
To me this film felt legit how ghostly or supernatural experiences really are. Half dreamed, half experienced, half heard, half imagined. The woman appears to possibly have sleep paralysis at one point, which could also explain her visions, including seeing herself walk around the area. She even appears to have a premonition that the man who delivers her supplies and petrol will die in a storm before he does. I do not think the sexual fantasy she has about him indicates a prior relationship, just her own loneliness as a woman on an island probably only seeing him as the only man for months on end.
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