IN VITRO
***
Directed by Will Howarth & Tom McKeith.
Starring Talia Zucker, Ashley Zukerman, Will Howarth.
Science-Fiction, Australia, 89 Minutes, Certificate 15.
Released On Digital in the UK by Plaion Pictures on 15th September
Once again we return to a dystopian future down under, in this chilly sci-fi from directors Will Howarth and Tom McKeith, co-written with Talia Zucker, pulling double duty with her lead performance here. Zucker may already be familiar to cult movie aficionados from her pivotal role in Joel Anderson’s cult 2008 ghost flick LAKE MUNGO. While this may not have the lasting, and still growing, legacy of that film, her work here, both onscreen and off as well as the promising work from her directors make this a more than worthwhile example of Australian genre cinema.
Set at an unspecified point in the future, the film's setting of a remote countryside farm promises something far more sedate than the Ozploitation and Road Warrior dystopias that we are more than familiar with. Climate change and its ravaging ways have disrupted the country's food chain, as well as internet communication. This is where we find Layla, Zucker, and her husband Jack, played by Ashley Zukerman, conducting experiments on live cattle. Essentially cloning their livestock to replenish the market, their work is still wracked with trial and error, often finding themselves cutting the lives of their cattle short due to what appears to be an internal organ failure of some sort. Layla, finding herself exhausted by the work and its relentless nature, pines to be reunited with her young son Toby, who is away at boarding school. A planned visit however is cut short when Layla begins to suspect that they may not be alone, as the presence of someone, or something, begins to intrude on the farmstead.
Clocking in at just under ninety minutes this is a measured, low-key slice of sci-fi inflected with character study beats. There is a genuine surprise that would be too spoilery to get into here, but it does give the film a slight BLACK MIRROR style hook, offering a look into the dynamics of long standing relationships that gives the film its dramatic edge. The film does stumble slightly when attempting to execute a chase and stalk template which, while still dark in tone and execution, fails to interest as much as what has come before. It is in the last act that a more emotional core comes into focus that gets the film back on track with a truly tricky situation that is resolved with a dark conclusion, pulling off a neat balancing act of darkness with a sweet yet disquieting final shot that lingers with the viewer long after the credits roll and fades to black.
While low in budget, the film's photography of the vast Australian landscapes and skyscapes, suggest a strive for epic, big ideas from directors Howard, who also has a small acting role, and McKeith. It may be a tricky film to talk about without giving the game away, as a large part of the film's pleasure is in discovering its secrets, but it is an easy one to recommend if you are looking for something different than the usual straight to streaming sci-fi low budgeters. Always interesting, it seems to suggest a promising future for its creative team, especially Zucker, with a role that recalls her earlier, eerier work. If they were to collaborate again, the results should be well worth checking out once more.
Iain MacLeod