So, just what is Beau afraid of in writer/director Ari Aster’s new film, Beau is Afraid? Turns out, everything! And by the end of this delirious genre-bender, you just might be too. At the very least, watching the film is the most fun you can have losing your mind. Beau is Afraid stars Joaquin Phoenix as Beau, an anxiety-ridden, timid man with some serious mommy issues. After his mother’s sudden death, Beau embarks on a twisted odyssey to return home, traveling through a world full of strange and mysterious characters. Where do I even begin? Self-described as a “Kafkaesque” epic, Beau is Afraid certainly lives up to that by playing out like one long, nightmarish fantasy in which reality, hallucinations and dreams all blend seamlessly until we have no idea what’s real and what isn’t. But fans of Aster are going to find themselves in for quite a surprise if they go in expecting a straight-up horror film, because Beau is Afraid defies genre. Containing all of the intensity of Darren Aronofsky’s Mother! and the adventurous wonder of something akin to Tim Burton’s Big Fish, Aster’s latest cannot simply be labeled as horror, or fantasy, or comedy. It’s everything. It’s damn near indescribable. An unforgettable journey is what Beau is Afraid promises, and an unforgettable journey is what it delivers. A film about life, death, and the sometimes terrifying responsibility we have in being part of a family, Aster’s film begins with the frantic cries of a woman, stressed commotion and the miraculous birth of baby Beau. He comes into the world screaming, and continues to do so for the next three hours. When I say Beau is Afraid is intense, I do mean intense in every way conceivable. During a discussion with his therapist (Stephen McKinley Henderson), we learn Beau has anxious tendencies crawling out of his ears. That all-consuming anxiety translates to the screen in a world that defies logic. We see everything through Beau’s eyes, and his version of reality is terrifying. Crowding the city street he lives on are raving lunatics, constant gunshots, dead bodies left lying around, and even a naked guy with a knife known as Birthday Boy Stab Man (Bradley Fisher). Yes, that all sounds insane. That’s the point. From the chaotic opening to its bewildering finish, Beau is Afraid turns anything and everything all the way up to eleven. You’ll want a good meal and a hot bath after out of sheer exhaustion from it. The core plot may be relatively straightforward—man ventures off to the place he grew up for his mother’s funeral—but a simple narrative this is not. Aster’s films tend to traffic in a heightened sense of emotion that pulverizes the audience, and in that sense, Beau is Afraid is Ari Aster’s masterpiece. Consider it more like an expression of various, powerful feelings than a traditional story. Nothing makes sense, because it is inexplicable. Fear. Anger. Love. Sadness. All of it pours off the screen with electric resonance through potent metaphors and dreamy imagery. We can’t easily explain dreams. The same applies here. It’s weird. Shocking. And goddamn entertaining. You never know which new path of madness Aster is going to take us down. Anyone who says they saw something coming in Beau is Afraid is a liar with their pants burnt to a crisp. Fans of Aster expecting three hours of horror—yes, there is plenty of that—will be pleasantly surprised to see the director’s comedic side flourish. I never knew how funny Ari Aster was until now, and I can even say Beau is Afraid is one of the funniest films of the year so far, which you better believe I didn’t think I’d be writing. From naked stabby men to a crazed neighbor telling Beau to turn the music he’s not playing down to a creature you have to see to believe, Aster’s film is a series of unfortunate circumstances played for laughs and terror. Sometimes you’ll laugh at how utterly absurd it all is. Other times, you’ll laugh because the madness of it is so intense, you have to do something for fear you may lose your own mind. Of course, this twisted dramedy would fall flat on its face without a strong cast to support Aster’s mad scientist of a script, and I can’t think of a single performance I didn’t love. Featuring a long list of beloved faces, including Parker Posey, Nathan Lane, Richard Kind and so many others, everyone is up for the task of delivering in-your-face portrayals that’ll have you leaning all the way back and uttering “whoa”. That’s all you can say to instances like someone screaming nonsense before chugging a bucket of paint. In the middle of this assortment of nuts, Joaquin Phoenix steps into a role he was born to play. Offering up a perfect blend of sensitivity and frightened bewilderment, Phoenix lays his heart out on his sleeve, bloody and beating for all to see. Beau is Afraid meditates on so much of what we fear about ourselves, that we’re not worthwhile, that we’re not as good as we think we are, with Phoenix transmitting those complex emotions in such a way that it ravages the soul. Beau is Afraid is the type of film with the power to change you. Hypnotic. Gorgeous. Terrifying. Funny as hell. Beau is Afraid will leave you breathless. Three hours is a long runtime, but I hardly felt it at all, I was so entranced by the spell which the film casts. This is Ari Aster’s most accomplished work to date. It’ll be too weird or dumbfounding for some, but those willing will find themselves on one wild ride to remember. Beau is Afraid arrives in theaters April 21st from A24. By Matt Konopka
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