Film

American Mary

Name: American Mary
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Released: 2013
Cast: Katharine Isabelle, Antonio Cupo, Tristan Risk, David Lovgren, Paula Lindberg

Body horror
Very dark

American Mary is a revenge thriller wrapped in body-horror aesthetics, following a broke medical student who turns underground body-modification into her weapon and livelihood. It's visceral, wickedly smart, and unapologetically feminist in its violence. For viewers who want their exploitation cinema to mean something.

TMDb rating

3.1

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like body horror that treats its ugliness as a critique of money and desperation, with a cool, clinical eye and a heroine who is never quite easy to read.

Skip it if you want gore for its own sake or a fast, plot-driven ride, since this is a slow, chilly character study that moves at a clinician's pace.

What it asks of you: Expect an unhurried build across its runtime, with the tension tightening slowly and a tone that stays cool rather than winking at the audience.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

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Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from American Mary

The wildcard

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