X
- 2015
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 30 m
- 2015
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 30 m
Summary Catherine (Elisabeth Moss) is a woman careening towards emotional collapse after a one-two punch of heartbreaking events. Seeking peace and solitude, she heads to the secluded lakehouse of her best friend, Virginia (Katherine Waterston). But their quiet country retreat becomes a journey into steadily mounting hysteria as past and present...
Directed By: Alex Ross Perry
Written By: Alex Ross Perry
- 2015
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 30 m
- 2015
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 30 m
Queen of Earth
77
6.5
Where to Watch
Summary Catherine (Elisabeth Moss) is a woman careening towards emotional collapse after a one-two punch of heartbreaking events. Seeking peace and solitude, she heads to the secluded lakehouse of her best friend, Virginia (Katherine Waterston). But their quiet country retreat becomes a journey into steadily mounting hysteria as past and present...
Directed By: Alex Ross Perry
Written By: Alex Ross Perry
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 23 Critic Reviews
77
83% Positive
19 Reviews
19 Reviews
17% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 23 Critic Reviews
77
83% Positive
19 Reviews
19 Reviews
17% Mixed
4 Reviews
4 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Queen of Earth is also a semi-comedy, often funny in an intentionally bleak way. And that, besides Moss, is what makes it work.
An unnerving, acidly funny work that fosters an acute air of dread without ever fully announcing itself as a horror movie.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 42 User Ratings
6.5
62% Positive
26 Ratings
26 Ratings
12% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
26% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 42 User Ratings
6.5
62% Positive
26 Ratings
26 Ratings
12% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
26% Negative
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
Easily the best film of 2015, Alex Ross Perry delivers another masterpiece that is equal parts disturbing, original, and gorgeous. If you liked Queen of Earth, check out The Color Wheel and Listen Up Philip.
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These people who gave negative ratings are not kings/queens of our precious Earth. They belong in another planet such as Mars or something. Queen of Earth is pretty to look at though. Ok, don't count the queens in this one... that's the only problem wrong with this movie.
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Queen of Earth is terrifying because it is so emotionally unmoored—Catherine is a character with little reason to care about anything or anyone, and Perry and Moss convey the danger of that brilliantly.
Queen of Earth is a psychodrama shot like a horror movie — "Persona" meets "The Shining." Right down to the haunting, minimalist score (by Keegan DeWitt) that’s perched dangerously, wonderfully between spooky and lyrical.
The result is chilling and beautifully composed, a stylish study of disintegration that is easier to admire than enjoy.
Throughout the film Moss traverses an astonishing range of emotions, from bliss to complete mental disintegration. She is fascinating to watch even when the film turns into a frustrating head-scratcher.
For some viewers, the acidity level of Perry’s movie will be too high to stomach. For others — anyone who thinks that there are too many warm hugs in Strindberg, for example — Queen of Earth awaits.
It is hard to say why I like Queen of Earth as much as I do. The film is sort of like that person you are romantically involved with who you love, but they refuse to let you in and there is this distance between the two of you and an air of mysteriousness. This film, if you were try and touch it, would squirm away disgustingly, but then come and hug you instead. Queen of Earth feels influenced by The Shining to me, just in the general feeling it gave, not necessarily in plot because story-wise they have no similarities. However, the general feeling it gave me was similar and also the fact they both portray a descent into madness against the backdrop of a vacation spot. I feel as though this film drove me crazy, as I found myself dying of laughter as it ended, but confused as to what I found so funny. A brilliantly crafted and wonderfully odd and disturbing psychological thriller, Queen of Earth features great performances from Elisabeth Moss and Katherine Waterston, as well as great direction from Alex Ross Perry. Though I love it and immediately wanted to watch it again after it ended, this is truly a film I would never recommend to anybody.
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No entertainment, just a character study.
Films are made for many purposes and I don't know what this one is about. They say it is a psychological-thriller, but yes, there is some psychology in it, but definitely no thriller, just a boring drama which means a character study material. The entire film was shot in a lake house and occasionally its surrounding area. There is no story in it, just the characters and they're being themselves that narrated in the days basis for a week, but those days were from the random years without a clear picture of what date, month or the year.
There is lots of close up shots like it pushes you back from your seat suppose if you are leaning towards the front. The cinematography was what I felt uncomfortable, but overall not bad. I think the actors were good, both Katherine Waterston and Elisabeth Moss, just for this film because I've seen them in the better roles.
Low budget and limited cast film, as well as short but not sweet as I anticipated. So I don't think everybody would enjoy it, I don't know who is the target audience, but I'm sure it will reach them who are going to defend it from people like me. Those who are not seen it, but want to, I only advise them to be careful while choosing it.
3/10
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I don't get it. Guess I better keep my day job because I'm never going to be a movie critic. This seemed like a mish mash of an idea that kept going off in tangents. Who is the one having emotional troubles? What happened last year? This is like a "day in the life" with no story line. But this is a movie and it should have a story line, it should have a point to make. Then again, I was never good at poetry in high school either.
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An exercise in pointlessness that has been described as acidly funny. Well, I think not! The incomprehensible story basically revolves around the toxic friendship between Elisabeth Moss and Katharine Waterston. They appear to meet up every year at the latter’s secluded lake house to exchange barbs and vitriol, but all in the name of friendship. The tone of the film comes on like some British ‘B’ horror movie of the early seventies complete with heavy doom laden music, but in reality the only horror exuding from this mess is the unfortunate loss of 90 minutes of one’s life. The story negates any interest in the performances and both actresses spout monologues which are sleep inducing. One scene of breakdown actually reminded me of a similar scene in Polanski’s The Tenant, a much better film, however. If all this wasn’t bad enough, in addition the sound is appalling rendering many lines of dialogue, mercifully, inaudible. A total mess.
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I had high hopes, but Queen of Earth is a mess. It's impossible to say where the movie falls apart because it doesn't hold together to begin with. The premise is specious: who can believe these women were ever friends, let alone that they would voluntarily spend a week together? I tried giving this film the benefit of the doubt and saw it through the full 90 minutes, but strong performances from Elizabeth Moss and Katherine Waterston weren't enough to keep it afloat.
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Awards
Film Club's The Lost Weekend
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema
• 1 Nomination
Indiewire Critics' Poll
• 1 Nomination
