After small-town wrestling star Lee Fletcher IV develops a crush on openly gay Kyle Culper, Lee gets stalked by a grotesque creature that pops every time he tries to navigate his sexuality while trying to live up to the expectations of his traditional, Christian fundamentalist family.
The take
Horror doesn’t have the best track record with homosexuality, as anything considered as the other are often alluded to in making its monsters, but in Ganymede, the script is flipped– Lee’s love for Kyle is portrayed in the most peaceful and calming of ways, while the harshly spat homophobic beliefs Lee’s dad beats into his family manifests into grotesque demons. It’s a novel idea, one that smartly suggests that forcing yourself in the closet forms a hell of one’s own making, but the way the film is executed gives Ganymede an uneven tone, especially since co-directors Colby Holt and Sam Probst don’t seem to know what to do with the film’s horror elements.
What stands out
They never really resolve the demonic hallucinations Lee has… They just disappear, which honestly is concerning in real life, because hallucinations are usually a sign of psychosis.
Comments
Add a comment
Your name
Your comment
UP NEXT
UP NEXT
UP NEXT
More like this in
Mutt (2023)
A Sundance-awarded film that actually stands the test of time, a brave new addition to the trans cinema canon
8.3
Nyad (2023)
For all its flaws, this sometimes-cliched, sometimes-subversive sports drama is undeniably stirring
7.7
End of the Century (2019)
A quietly devastating queer romance that does everything with softness and sensitivity
8.5
Retablo (2017)
A quiet but potent coming-of-age drama
7.0
XXY (2007)
The landmark Argentine feature that explores the intersex experience
7.0
Cassandro (2023)
A gut-punch performance by Gael García Bernal elevates a conventional biopic
7.4
A Fantastic Woman (2017)
7.8
Bad Education (2004)
A brazen, stylish twist to the classic murder mystery
7.8
Of an Age (2022)
A stunning Australian film that captures the immaculate heartache of first love
8.0
Before Night Falls (2000)
A richly imagined journey into the life of Cuban poet and novelist Reinaldo Arenas