Peter Strickland directs Sidse Babett Knudsen, Chiara D’Anna and Fatma Mohamed in this tale of a lesbian sub-dom couple feeling the strain of living out their fantasies in a lush country villa. 

A kind of flip side to the wonderful Secretary – there a pair of misfits found connection and tenderness through kink, here the demands of one partner’s precise sexual needs create tension and mistrust in their idyllic set-up. Everything about this film is sensual and sublime; the ethereal soundtrack, autumnal location, beautiful outerwear, tastefully discreet lingerie, Roeg inspired edits and the two exquisite leads. Having said that, like Strickland’s previous Berberian Sound Studio it is an exercise in a whole lot of gorgeous nothing and your patience will be tested if you don’t invest in the couples subtle shifts in sanity, power and happiness. Here I did  (more so than with Toby Jones’ “chiff chaff” obsessed sound effects guru) and it proves about as good as a film where one lead classily pisses into the other’s mouth can be.

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