clayface
Director: James Watkins
Author: Mike Flanagan
Starring: Tom Rhys Harries, Naomi Ackie, David Dencik, Max Minghella and Eddie Marsan
Rating: ★★★★
if there’s one thing that DC has mastered this spinoff. Whether it’s part of the new DC Universe (The Peacemaker et al) or Matt Reeves’ world (The Penguin), the studio has consistently churned out great standalone stories based on iconic DC characters. Clayface is another example of why style doesn’t really matter in this universe. James Watkins sets up a world that is neither just nor fair, and Tom Rhys Harris gives us a tragic anti-hero in the mold of Jimmy McGill. The resulting cocktail is a 21st-century Darkman and DC’s best presentation since Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker before the pandemic.
Base
Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries) is a Hollywood star who has just got his big break with a role for which he received an Oscar nomination. He has returned to his hometown, Gotham, after an encounter with a gangster left his face permanently scarred and disfigured. Due to a smear campaign he has no career or reputation left. Desperate Matt turns to Dr. Caitlin Corr (Naomi Ackie), a ‘fringe’ scientist whose experimental treatment may reconstruct his face. But Matt soon realizes he’s bitten off more than he can chew. As he battles his inner demons, Matt sets out on a path of vengeance, determined to bring justice to all those who have wronged him.
Bizarre body horror in the world of Batman
Clayface is the brainchild of Mike Flanagan, and that’ll tell you everything you need to know about its sound and spirit. The film is shocking, repulsive, and at times even funny. It will shock you, take your breath away and make you close your eyes at several moments. But none of this is extreme. Clayface is funny because it confronts the realities of this world head on, and it wants you to see the injustice and pain inflicted on our hero. James Watkins sets the tone early on when Matt Hagen is attacked by gangster Marcos Szabo, covered in blood and gore. The film doesn’t hesitate to shock us with the ugliness inflicted on blue-eyed Hollywood hero Matt Hagen.
All of this is aided by some good world-building, with Gotham being a lawless land with trash on the streets and corruption in the institutions. It may be a different universe, but Clayface’s Gotham borrows a lot from the Joker’s Gotham. The main theme in both films is how the ‘rot’ in society can force a just person to become evil. The Joker dealt with it more deeply, while Clayface dealt with it with more urgency. This is a story of revenge. Therefore, it is more urgent, more continuous and much faster paced.
a little too smart for your own good
Clayface plants several seeds in his first act that later tie into the story. The only trouble is that these callbacks are very transparent. You know when warped Matt Hagen is saying a line about vengeance on a talk show, he’ll say it again later. You know that his rival Oscar contender’s movie – One Bad Night – is pretty much a summary of Matt’s life. And you know there’s something more to Matt and Caitlin’s tradition of leaning into each other. These elements were so clever or hidden in front of you. Almost as if the director didn’t want to be too subtle about them. The good thing is that the pace of the film does not allow the audience to dwell on any one of these for too long. And despite the lack of subtlety, some of them make for really good cinematic moments.
tom rice comes harries
Clayface is transported by its protagonist. Tom Rhys Harris is fantastic as the ambitious Matt Hagen. He is talented and knows he has struggled to get where he has, which makes him somewhat arrogant. In contrast, Matt is in the aftermath of his tragedy, where he is filled with anger, frustration, and feelings of helplessness. Even through his prosthetics, Tom brings out these emotions beautifully. Naomi Ackie and Max Minghella fit the roles of Matt’s doctor Caitlin and her police boyfriend John Borelli. Another standout performer is David Dencik as gangster Marcos Szabo, who brings much-needed menace and evil to this tale of vengeance.
Clayface has arrived in the midst of Hollywood’s horror renaissance. The past few years have shown that almost everything is ripe for disaster. Clayface shows that even superhero stories can have their own version of horror, without sacrificing authenticity or world-building.