DARLIN’: A Well-Balanced Mixture Of Heart & Gore

Pollyanna McIntosh wrote and directed Darlin’, a follow-up to The Woman, which stands on its own. Like The Woman, Darlin’ challenges the definition of the word civilized by exploring the dark sides of so-called civilized environments.

Tonal Shifts Make Darlin’ Its Own Unique World

The tone in Darlin’ is lighter and with more moments of comedy than The Woman, and this works to its advantage, giving the film its own unique feeling, while still holding onto the social commentary present within the characters and their stories. Having a lighter tone in Darlin’ shows the differences between Darlin (Lauryn Canny) and The Woman (Pollyanna McIntosh), even before she is taken to a hospital, and thus is taken to a Catholic school for orphaned girls. One of the aspects of Darlin’ that worked the best for me was its focus on the other girls at the school being the ones who truly accept Darlin, much more than the bishop (Bryan Batt), who is completely focused on his own interests of saving his school.

Adding lighter moments gives the film a unique tone, and shines a light on the darkness of the ‘civilized’ world Darlin is brought to at the Catholic school. In between moments of gore and horror, the film gives us glimpses into Darlin’s life changing as she makes friends. The budding friendship between Darlin and Billy (Maddie Nichols) works to help the film build its heart. Maddie Nichols and Lauryn Canny both give wonderful performances, and while watching their characters in simple moments like listening to music in the woods or dancing together, I felt invested. I wanted these girls, along with all the other orphans, to be safe.

Challenges the Meaning of Civilized

We were given glimpses into characters within the church-run school and hospital who deeply cared for their patients and students. Tony (Cooper Andrews) is one of the few people at the hospital who is shown to care about the patients more than how it benefits the church. He shows compassion for Darlin from the first moment we meet her. He also interacts with The Woman, and shows a similar amount of compassion and determination to help.

From the moment we meet Sister Jennifer (Nora-Jane Noone), I could tell how uncomfortable she was with the bishop’s plan. Her feelings of unease brought out the horror of the bishop’s actions. Even though Darlin’ has moments of gore with The Woman trying to find Darlin, and moments showcasing the feral side of both characters, the horror of the film mostly comes through in moments with the bishop. The most horrific scenes of the film deal with his character, and even though I just watched people get ripped apart by feral women, the scenes which I reacted to the most were so far removed from the gore, yet they perfectly captured the horror of men using women.

Like The Woman, Darlin’ explores this idea of the civilized world being a harsher and worse place than the cannibalistic world McIntosh’s Woman and Canny’s Darlin exist within. Darlin’ takes this idea and looks towards the Catholic church. What I found most interesting about this social commentary in Darlin’ was how it didn’t just blindly aim itself at all aspects of the church.

Lauryn Canny gives an especially memorable performance as the titular Darlin. She gives a wonderful performance early in the film without speaking at all, and as the film progresses, her way of speaking changes gradually until she speaks with more ease nearing the end of the film. Canny’s performance shows the changes in her character, but also captures how she maintains some aspects of her feral personality no matter how “civilized” she appears.

Cinematography and Sound

Another aspect of Darlin’ I thought worked especially well is its use of sound. So often, I watch horror films where sound overpowers the action onscreen. With Darlin’, I felt the score mixed well with the action, and I never felt like one overpowered the other. The music gives atmosphere to scenes, but I never felt like the music was telling me how to feel.

Darlin’ also used music outside the score to build relationships, and show the change and growth within its main character. Music shared between Billy and Darlin gave this film a unique tone, which captures both the horrors of civilized society and the joys of making friends, and finding those people who care about you as a person, and not a means to achieve something.

The cinematography of Darlin’ captures the closed-in feeling of the Catholic church in beautiful contrast to the wide expanses of the woods. Through differences in visuals, the differences between areas of society are perfectly captured.

Darlin’: Conclusion

Darlin’ is both a heartfelt story of growing up and making friends and a gory depiction of the dangers connected to men believing they are above the law and God. Darlin’ offers social commentary on men abusing their power, while also showing the strength that comes from women and girls standing up for each other. Pollyanna McIntosh wrote and directed a beautiful story about growth, while she also gives another captivating performance as The Woman.

Lauryn Canny creates a unique character, one who maintains aspects of her feral upbringing, while also discovering more about herself. Maddie Nichols and Lauryn Canny play wonderfully off each other, and create a memorable friendship between their characters. Darlin’ works as both a horror film and an examination of growing up and finding the people you want in your life.

Are you interested in seeing a follow-up to The Woman? Do you think Darlin’ will stand on its own as a horror film? Are you interested in seeing more horror written and directed by women? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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