REPLACE (Film Review)

                                Starring: Rebecca Forsythe, Lucie Aron, Barbara Crampton

                                                Directed by: Norbert Keil

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  To watch a woman hem and haw over the vastly endless array of beauty products laid out in any department store is something to behold, and simply the notion of how far one will go in order to delay any sign of aging is a perplexing task. Allure and elegance is truly in the eye of the beholder and in director Norbert Keil's Replace, the idea of refinement reaches a horrific stratum - take that, Maybelline!

  Our leading lady Kira (Forsythe) has a bit of a problem - you see, her memory is a bit off in duration of retaining any semblance of what she's done past a week's time...and oh yeah - her skin is beginning to age to the point of disintegrating right off her face. It's fairly obvious that she's WAY beyond a little concealer and rouge - she's going to have to resort to alternate means of "epidermis rehabilitation" if she wants to keep that youthful glow. Her struggles lead her to the enigmatic Dr. Crober (Crampton in a fantastic performance), who shows Kira the way to a more buoyant presentation of herself...now how that's attained must be seen to be believed, but trust me when I tell ya - it ain't pretty (bad pun included at no extra cost).

  With the film's looks and feels, we're transported back in time to the Giallo-style of filmmaking, and it's something to behold - when a movie that's trying to provide a commentary about the social acceptance of the "pretty people" employs the tactic of stunning imagery and gorgeous backdrops - well, that's just a prize all in itself for the viewer's eyes to reel in. Forsythe's portrayal of a young woman clawing desperately against the even stronger hands of time is quite the wonder to watch, and she pulls it off effortlessly making this descent into body-horror traumatically authentic and wince-worthy.

 Replace is one of those time-consuming films that will more than likely act as a cautionary tale of sorts, and should be watched by those who possess not only a strong moral compass but a durable stomach of steel to handle all the messy pieces flying around. This one's absolutely worth a watch and is now available to stream on a variety of platforms as of October 1st.

RATING: 3.5 out of 5