Saltburn Review

Hatred for the mega-rich and a thirst trap leading role for Barry Keoghan is likely enough for many viewers to overlook the glaring issues found in Saltburn. Immediately divisive for the sake of it on social media and no reason elsewhere, the TikTok trend of a movie has grabbed the world by the throat and shook it of all its senses. Emerald Fennell’s latest piece is another cut-and-shut case of grabbing a socially relevant bit of material, shrugging and lacing it with visuals and scenes which do not quite get to the core of the potential on display. Unlike Promising Young Woman, though, there is an urgency, post-modernist pop filtering throughout this. Flittering mentions of Britpop, a Richard E. Grant supporting performance quietly stealing the show, and a surprisingly intricate dissection of sex without intimacy on display throughout – it all feels very retro.  

Saltburn is less about sexual desire and the corruption of obsession and more in tune with the themes of using uncomfortable truths and intimacy as a weapon. It comes through clearly enough to work but leaves breathing room for the surprisingly well-intended and additional British humour, hence Grant. He strikes the same chords he did with his best works and the chances he is given to shine are heartbreaking, and honest and form the emotive core of this one. Despite his uber riches, he comes across as the only genuine soul confined in the walls of Saltburn, a man wishing for peace in an otherwise unruly and gossip-filled world of cold-blooded creeps and their Scouse stay-in troublemaker. Keoghan flirts with other accents along the way but keeps himself in step, with another solid performance under his belt. 

Chemistry is key to those appearances. Keoghan, Jacob Elordi and Archie Madekwe have an intense triangle of spite about their Oxford definitions and upper-class egalitarianism. Tearing it down is inevitable and through Keoghan’s portrayal of Oliver Quick, offered hands here and there from Elspeth Catton (Rosamund Pike) and Venetia Catton (Alison Oliver), the warning signs become clear. Alison Oliver holds clear power on the screen – interactions with Keoghan in the first act begin the act of foreshadowing but never in an obvious light. Eat the rich, whether from their bathtubs or in cringe-inducing bouts of intimacy. Saltburn provides plenty of chemistry and charisma, its cast interweaving as it aims at those who can afford to toy with people for their entertainment. Vapid people, but Fennell, whose direction here is strong and lingers on as the unique voice of an auteur at work, stretches too far and accidentally makes some of these people likeable. 

It should never be the case where glorification comes to a head with the message. Those watching Saltburn and championing the actions of Oliver Quick are the same people who would take up the lives of Elspeth and Sir James (Grant) in a heartbeat. He is as vicious as the rest of them but for some will be justified due to his background and how hard he must fight to be accepted in a social circle initially suspicious and full of mockery against him. But by the end of Saltburn, their suspicions are proven true – Fennell shoots and scores but in her own net. The build-up and delivery of these themes are exceptional but become undone when, at the heart of it, the Catton family is a cold-blooded but poorly executed excuse to toy with the idea of quiet revolutions against old systems.