SummaryClock is the story of a woman who enrolls in a clinical trial to try and fix her seemingly broken biological clock after friends, family, and society pressures her to have children. Dianna Agron leads as Ella, with Jay Ali as her husband and Saul Rubinek as her father. Melora Hardin features as the pioneering doctor managing Ella’s treat...
SummaryClock is the story of a woman who enrolls in a clinical trial to try and fix her seemingly broken biological clock after friends, family, and society pressures her to have children. Dianna Agron leads as Ella, with Jay Ali as her husband and Saul Rubinek as her father. Melora Hardin features as the pioneering doctor managing Ella’s treat...
A fantastically frenetic performance from Dianna Agron, a truly chilling central entity and interrogations of Jewish heritage elevate Clock (and the potential of further monstrous motherhood stories) above otherwise lackluster competition stateside.
Não há mais espaço para discursos diretos sobre feminismo no cinema. Já estamos saturados de dramas e de panfletagem, de tal modo que cabem aos roteiristas tentar inovar na abordagem, criando elementos ficcionais ou mesmo de filmes que lembram o velho e efetivo suspense psicológico para nos fazer chamar a atenção para a urgência do tema, e é isso que encontramos aqui.
Embora peque no didatismo, temos um filme bastante alinhado ao seu propósito demostrar o peso que a obrigação da maternidade tem para as mulheres, e olha que estamos falando de uma mulher bem resolvida, independente, bonita para os padrões ocidentais.
A analogia ao relógio biológico, embora seja meio óbvia, consegue entregar o tom de urgência, de corrida contra o tempo. A nossa protagonista PRECISA engravidar, ou o tempo lhe será fatal.
Ao aceitar participar de um programa misterioso sobre fertilidade, o segundo ato do filme se passa numa espécie de clínica macabra, e aí o filme começa a derrapar. Primeiro porque faltou segurar a mão, para tornar muito mais crível. E segundo, porque "bestializou" a protagonista, outrora tão dona de si.
É claro que num cenário como esse não se pode confiar em ninguém, e a luta contra ou favor da maternidade não me pareceu enveredar pela crítica social, mas tão somente pelas escolhas individuais, o que de certa forma ao mesmo tempo que enfraquece a narrativa no geral, fortalece o jogo de atuação e afeição do público à personagem.
Consegue manter o clima de suspense até seu final bem previsível, mas dentro das limitações do projeto é um delicioso passatempo que irá fazer refletir sobre a importância do tema, perceber que, sim, ainda é extremamente necessário falar das escolhas individuais das mulheres.
While the movie becomes a little repetitious in the middle, it ends strongly with a succession of unforgettable scenes of gruesome body horror. Clock leans too heavily on too-obvious visual metaphors, but it’s still a vivid and visceral explication of one woman’s fears.
Ms. Jacknow, finally, finds herself with little room to move except into a full-blown nightmare hellscape and turns Clock, for all its thoughtful moments, into one movie for two very distinct audiences.
Clock showcases that Jacknow is a talent to watch in horror, though the film doesn’t stick the landing. Occasionally, the concept is stretched too thin, especially when the character work is lacking.
Clock is a psychological thriller, or perhaps even a satire, in horror clothing, tantalizing us with thought-provoking ideas, only to abandon them: nature versus nurture, the influence of the wellness-industrial complex over minds and bodies, the oppressive expectations placed on women — including by themselves.
'Clock' has 'Smile'-like visuals and a story reminiscent of 'The Bone Woman' and the 'Dead Ringers' series. However, it all goes off the rails with strange creative decisions, not-so-good editing, and the cheap scares you'd expect from a generic horror film. The story follows a middle-aged woman who, pressured by her friends and family, submits herself to a new fertility test, which goes wrong. The film starts promisingly by exploring women's reluctance to have children and how exhausting social pressure can be. But then it introduces a subplot about the stereotype involving Jewish guilt that feels forced. The last act is just crazy (beware of a very graphic shot involving a p3nus), and not in the best way; there are ghosts, a police chase, and a gory murder. If the story would've just focused on the motherhood theme, maybe it would've turned out better. As it is, 'Clock' is a well-acted horror flick that fails because of too many ideas and a derivative style.
Clock is a film that I did not find very cohesive while assessing its strengths and weaknesses. However, I must acknowledge its suitability in addressing the central theme of how the concept of the "biological clock" becomes an oppressive burden for women.
The film effectively explores how the accumulation of family obligations, fears, anxieties, religion, and guilt can exacerbate feelings of abnormality in the person dealing with all those emotions. So far so good.
Unfortunately, its horror foundations are undermined by a haphazard and predictable execution of technicalities that prevent the story from transcending mediocrity.
Dianna Agron delivers a commendable performance, yet its emotional impact is limited by the confines of the script.
Clock had the potential to emphasize more significant issues, but the decision to approach it as a conventional horror film with standard tropes, coupled with a disappointing thematic conclusion, diminishes its relevance.