From the very start, Medusa Deluxe’s opening scene throws you right into the action. Cleve (Clare Perkins), a talented hairdresser, is in the middle of a rant about the shocking discovery of another stylist’s murdered and scalped body on the premises of a prestigious hairdressing competition that’s about to take place. Surrounded by models and fellow hairdressers, she fills viewers in on the gruesome details of Mosca’s death, which has really thrown a wrench into everyone’s plans. As the stylists nervously wait in dressing rooms for the police to question them, the gossip begins, launching audiences into an edgy, neo-noir that dazzles just as much as it falls flat.
The two most impressive qualities of Thomas Hardiman’s directorial debut are the cast and the cinematography. Filmed as if the entire movie was shot in just one long take, the camera cleverly follows its characters down seedy back halls into yellow-lit dressing rooms where we are constantly pop in on the action. It’s an impressive technique reminiscent of Alejandro González Iñárritu’s Birdman, which also employed the long take technique as well as the same behind-the-scenes atmosphere of artists preparing for their moment in the spotlight. In the case of Medusa Deluxe. though, the seemingly never-ending focus of the camera gives the film a buzzy, heightened sense of awareness that keeps the audience from ever getting too comfortable with any one character or idea. Amidst the plumes of hairspray and infinite bobby pins, the murderer is always right around the corner just waiting for us to catch up.
Which brings us to the cast. Without the unique array of individuals in Medusa Deluxe, the film would lose much of its fanfare to a plot that wants to shine but can never seem to get out of its own way. Still, Luke Pasqualino is magnetic as Angel, Mosca’s grieving widower, and each time Perkins is on screen, she fills the room with a tension so palpable you can’t help but feel drawn to her rage. It also helps that the movie’s costuming is absolutely superb. Hair never looked so good or so high than it does in Medusa Deluxe, but for all the film’s fanfare, it still ends up with a bad case of bedhead.
This is largely due to the fairly one-dimensional plot. Audiences are tasked with having to piece together the events leading up to Mosca’s murder, but when all is finally revealed, the reveal falls flat. There’s just simply not enough build up to really make us care about Mosca and his missing scalp. It also doesn’t help that Medusa Deluxe always seems to be on the cusp of embracing the humor of a hairdressing competition (à la Best in Show) without ever really allowing itself to go there. Of course, there are quotable moments that nod to the characters’ styling professions (“It’s fucking TRESemeé, you crazy bitch!”) in ways that are funny and original, but these moments are few and far between in a movie that could really use more of this kind of extravagance to make it pop. Still, for all its faults, there is a lot to admire about Hardiman’s debut. He may not have perfected the art of the bouffant just yet, but give him a little more time and he’s sure to style a masterpiece.
Photo courtesy of A24
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