The Transfiguration (film)

The Transfiguration is a 2016 American horror drama film written and directed by Michael O'Shea. It was selected to be screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival.[1][2] The film was released in the United Kingdom on April 21, 2017.[3]

The Transfiguration
Film poster
Directed byMichael O'Shea
Produced bySusan Leber
Written byMichael O'Shea
StarringEric Ruffin
Music byMargaret Chardiet
CinematographySung Rae Cho
Edited byKathryn J. Schubert
Production
company
Transfiguration Productions
Release date
  • 14 May 2016 (2016-05-14) (Cannes)
  • 21 April 2017 (2017-04-21)
Running time
97 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Plot

The film opens with Milo drinking the blood of a dead man who has his pants down in the men's bathroom. He then steals his wallet, washes his mouth and leaves for home where he crosses a date off his calendar, and adds the stolen cash to a secret bag. He is often shown watching videos of extreme graphic violence, and writing in what appears to be a visual journal. The next morning he throws up the blood. On the way home he is confronted by bullies who hold him down and urinate on him. Taking a shower, we briefly see his back looking like it has suffered burning. At home, where he lives with his brother Lewis, he stares at a closed door before snapping out of it. In the neighborhood he is mocked by thugs. He then meets Sophie, who is apparently new to the neighborhood. He helps her with her bags.

The next day, while walking on the beach, he witnesses a group of white men drinking beer and taking turns raping Sophie. After they leave he walks in on Sophie as she is cutting herself. They end up talking and drinking. When he leans in towards her bloody arm, she stops him. They come back to his house to watch a video of lambs getting slaughtered violently, during which she abruptly leaves. The next day she explains she had seen similar videos and she simply had to leave. Home alone, Milo is shown staring at the closed door again. He is often shown watching movies about vampires, or just listening to them without watching. He visits the park where he sleeps beneath a bridge and ambushes a hobo and drinks his blood. He then mark another date off his calendar.

The next day he ask Sophie out for movies where they watch Nosferatu, which he considers a realistic depiction of vampirism. After, Sophie claims Twilight is a better film and suggests he watch or read it. Milo speaks about what he thinks realistic vampires are like. He points out that he believes vampires cannot kill themselves. They talk about their family, revealing both parents of both of them are dead, specifically that Sophie's grandfather beats her. and Milo's mother having killed herself when he was younger, and that he still doesn't know where her grave is because his brother will not discuss it. On the way home they are harassed by the neighborhood thugs again. Later, she kisses him going home. The next morning they visit the grave of Milo's mother, which Sophie tracked down.

The next day, a white couple in their car stop and ask Milo if he can help them acquire "C" or "molly". He lures the guy to the basement of a nearby building where he hides as the thugs shoot him. After talking to the police, he is escorted back home. Having seen this, the thugs distrust him. Sophie, upset that he's been avoiding her, brings Milo Twilight's book and kisses him. At home, Milo remembers standing next to his mother's fresh corpse with her wrist cut, and tasting her blood. His brother tells him to leave and advises him to be careful regarding both the thugs and the police.

Sitting at the docks, Sophie and Milo discuss God, and what they would do with a million dollars. She tells him she would move in with her cousin in Alabama. They sleep together. Looking at his calendar, Milo realizes the date for him to quench his bloodthirst has passed without him noticing. Sophie asks to stay with Milo when she escapes her abusive grandfather. After living happily together for a few days, she discovers his instructions to "hunt" and kill, and violent drawing and leaves. Milo leaves her a voicemail asking for a chance to explain. Roaming around the town, he finds a drunk, abusive man and follows him home. He enters his house to kill him but also kills his little daughter first and drinks her blood. On the way home he shakes and cries. He contemplates suicide on top of a tall building, but does not go through with it.

The next day Sophie apologizes for disappearing. Milo gives Andre, the leader of the thugs, a bag of stolen goods, to they can "trust each other again". Milo then visits a police station and turns them in. He buys Sophie flowers and they leave for a day of fun. At night, sitting beneath the docks at the beach, he imagines killing her and sucking the blood out of her neck. Upon departure, he gives her the money she needs to move. She asks him to move with her but he refuses and leaves. At home, he watches a shootout during which all of the thugs are arrested. The next morning he leaves Sophie a voicemail asking whether she had left, after which he is gunned down. Sophie calls him back to no avail. He is bagged and moved to a hospital where they remove his heart during autopsy. After he's buried, it is revealed that he wanted the thugs to kill him because he wanted to die and even though he could not kill himself, he could arrange it.

Cast
  • Eric Ruffin as Milo
  • Chloe Levine as Sophie
  • Aaron Clifton Moten as Lewis
  • Carter Redwood as Andre
  • Danny Flaherty as Mike
  • Larry Fessenden as Drunk Man
  • Lloyd Kaufman as Hobo
  • James Lorinz as Detective
  • Victor Pagan as Deli Regular
  • Anna Friedman as Stacey

Reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 85%, based on 55 reviews with an average rating of 6.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "The Transfiguration tells a quieter, more deliberately paced tale than genre fans might expect, but for those with the patience to let it sink in, it offers its own rewards."[4] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average rating of 65 out of 100, based on 16 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[5]

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References
  1. Debruge, Peter; Keslassy, Elsa (April 14, 2016). "Cannes 2016: Film Festival Unveils Official Selection Lineup". Variety. Penske Business Media. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  2. O'Falt, Chris (May 16, 2016). "Who Is Michael O'Shea and How Did His American Indie Vampire Movie Get Into Cannes?". IndieWire. Penske Business Media. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  3. "THE TRANSFIGURATION (15)". British Board of Film Classification. March 9, 2017. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  4. "The Transfiguration (2017)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
  5. "The Transfiguration Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
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