If you’ve ever wondered why the sisterhood of women isn’t, well, more sisterly to its members, then take a look at Medusa, a Brazilian fantasy horror movie written and directed by Anita Rocha da Silveira, which takes a deep, memorable dive into how women are controlled and manipulated.
Mariana (Mariana Olivera) and Michele (Lara Tremouroux) are members of their evangelical church’s all-girl group, Michele and the Treasures of the Lord. They sing songs promoting religious propaganda, the importance of perfect beauty and their love of the Lord. They also promote beauty via online make-up tutorials and lessons on how to take the perfect selfie. By night though, a different picture emerges, and the girls, beautifully made up and with immaculate hair, are part of a female vigilante group who patrol the streets of their town, wearing white face masks and brutally beating up any women they consider to be sinful. The victims are forced to submit to the Lord on camera. The vigilantes are inspired by the story of Melissa, a notoriously beautiful but very promiscuous woman in their town, who twenty years ago had her face set on fire by a masked attacker and who hasn’t been seen since.
The very sexy and athletic men of the church call themselves The Vigilantes de Siao. They spend their days perfecting powerful synchronized dance routines and their nights out on the streets also cleansing the town of impure people. The church is led by the powerful Pastor Guilherme (Thiago Fragaso) who keeps the girls on a tight leash. The women are introduced to the men through speed-dating sessions and many form romantic relationships with them.
One night, one of the victims of the girls’ vigilante attacks fights back and glasses Mariana in the face, leaving her with a long wound on her cheek. The other girls are aghast at her loss of good looks, as is her plastic surgeon boss who dismisses her from her day job. Mariana decides to search for the missing Melissa and hears that she might be alive and in a coma on a hospital ward. She gets a job in the coma ward and searches for Melissa during her shifts caring for her patients. Whilst working at the hospital and learning about the life stories of her patients, she begins to change her opinions and her set of values. This causes friction between her and Michele. However, the two women soon reunite and begin to fight back against the patriarchy and values of the church.
Medusa is an intelligent, thoughtful analysis of how women are controlled by the patriarchy, right-wing moralistic agendas, and impossible standards of beauty – often set by other women. There’s a queer undercurrent to Da Silveira’s tale, which combines camp horror, politics, religious oppression, equality, humor, beauty, and community in a unique blend. An excellent soundtrack includes Cities in Dust by Siouxsie and the Banshees and Wishing on a Star by Rose Royce as well as the comical religious harmonies of the girl band. Highly recommended.
IN UK CINEMAS FROM 14TH JULY Also on PVOD, ESVOD on-demand services Including on Amazon Prime,
Apple TV, Google Play, Curzon Home Cinema, and BFI Player.
Queerguru’s Contributing Editor Ris Fatah is a successful fashion/luxury business consultant (when he can be bothered) who divides and wastes his time between London and Ibiza. He is a lover of all things queer, feminist, and human rights in general. @ris.fatah
Labels: 2023, Anita Rocha da Silveira, Brazilian Horror, Mariana Olivera, Medusa, review, Ris Fatah
