One subject that can be an effective horror tool is food and body health. Stephen King explored the horrifying effects of rapid weight loss in his book Thinner. Freddy Krueger has had a few particularly delicious food-related kills, involving a meatball pizza or stuffing a person’s face. So, it’s natural that a filmmaker explores a whole body horror aspect of the topic. Enter Natalie Erika James. James is known for Relic and Apartment 7A and has written and directed Saccharine. IFC and Shudder have just released the savory trailer, which you can view in the above embed.
Saccharine stars Midori Francis, Danielle Macdonald and Madeleine Madden.
The official synopsis in the press release reads,
“Hana (Midori Francis), a lovelorn medical student, becomes terrorized by a sinister force after taking part in an obscure weight loss craze: eating human ashes.
Filmmaker Natalie Erika James’ (RELIC) third feature offers a modern and timely take on toxic messaging around weight and appearance that permeates every corner of our culture. With her latest film SACCHARINE, James takes an intimate look into one woman’s struggle with body image, self-worth, and shame-driven compulsion, told through a supernatural body-horror with a queer lens.
Independent Film Company will open SACCHARINE in theaters across the U.S. on Friday, May 22nd followed by a Shudder streaming release in July.”
The film has made the rounds at film festivals, including Sundance, the Berlin International Film Festival and the Overlook Film Festival. Guy Lodge of Variety said of the film, “The third feature from writer-director James is a timely one… functions as a cautionary tale for the mania caused by a relentlessly body-conscious culture, tainting everything from friendly conversation to punitively aspirational Instagram feeds.”
Our own Chris Bumbray gave a positive review for the film after screening it at Sundance, saying in his review, “While it’s not The Substance, and isn’t as much of a knockout as another great Sundance body-horror flick from last year, The Ugly Stepsister, Saccharine is always stylish and compelling. It will make its debut on Shudder later this year and seems bound to be one of the streamer’s buzzier titles, with the film received warmly here in Park City. It’s one to keep an eye out for.”