Set at an all-boys water polo camp, The Place centres on a socially anxious twelve-year-old boy, Ben (Everett Blunck) caught between the desire to belong and a quiet discomfort with his teammates' behaviour and particularly their treatment of an outcast, Eli (Kenny Rasmussen), affected by an imaginary infectious plague (or is it imaginary...?).
The Plague is, at times, a frustrating film but not without its merits. What initially feels like a familiar tale of adolescent cruelty and toxic group dynamics eschews some more dramatic development and instead skilfully captures the insidious nature of bullying and how it hides behind rituals that pass for jokes and light banter. Rather than positioning Ben as the victim, the script’s smartest choice is to cast him as a character in between, someone who gradually earns a fragile, conditional acceptance from the other boys, yet remains the only one who speaks to Eli, running the risk of being shunned himself.
The cruelty here is never overtly violent. There are no dramatic beatings, no acts of physical abuse. That is precisely what makes it so effective and unnerving. Eli seems content in his solitude, lost in his own world but the consequences are felt later, when the real emotional toll begins to show.
Yet the film's impact is lessened by overwritten dialogue, a script which at times meanders and a handful of distracting mannerisms that are typical of a certain kind of American independent cinema. There is also a slight element of body horror weaved into the narrative, but this is the one part of the film that feels somewhat tacked on. It serves as a obvious metaphor but it adds little beyond that. The emotional horror is far more potent.
While the cast of young actors is impressive, Kenny Rasmussen’s outstanding performance truly soars above them all. His portrayal of the group’s oddball figure is painfully believable, not in the usual "kooky" kind of way but a far more layered and unpredictable creation. He gets all the best, most affecting scenes, and the film is at its strongest when focused on him.
Where The Plague finally comes into its own is in its final scenes, which finds a more confident tone and a restrained, ambiguous conclusion in which allegiances are tested and painful moral choices have to be made, landing with an unexpected emotional weight. Despite its flaws The Plague is an admirable debut.
Review by Laurent de Alberti
Star rating: ★★★☆☆
Official Selection, Un Certain Regard.
The Plague by Charlie Bollinger. Starring Everett Blunck, Kenny Rasmussen...
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