Although Saltburn has been praised by critics and viewers, it faces the same two problems that hurt a thriller from 2020 from the same writer and director. The black comedy psychological thriller Saltburn made it to many “best movies of 2023” lists and its popularity grew after its arrival on Amazon Prime Video. Saltburn was written and directed by Emerald Fennell, and it takes viewers back to the early 2000s, in England, to meet Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) and Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi), students at the University of Oxford: Oliver was a scholarship student, and Felix came from a wealthy family.
Oliver befriends Felix and the latter invites him to spend the summer at his family’s estate, the title Saltburn. Once there, Oliver meets the rest of the Catton family and quietly sets his plan into motion, causing tragedy for the Catton family. Saltburn has various shocking scenes and a couple of plot twists that enhance the suspense and mystery, and all of these are elements that can be found in Emerald Fennell’s previous movie, Promising Young Woman – and, unfortunately, Saltburn also has the same two problems that Promising Young Woman faced back in 2020.
Saltburn & Promising Young Woman Both Fail To Stick The Landing
Promising Young Woman is the story of Cassie (Carey Mulligan), who, haunted by a traumatic event that drove her best friend, Nina, to commit suicide, decides to seek revenge against Nina’s abuser, as there was no investigation by the school nor consequences from the legal system. Promising Young Woman also has a dose of shocking moments and plot twists, especially during its third act, but it has the same problems that Saltburn faced, despite both being critically acclaimed movies and Promising Young Woman even winning the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
In both Saltburn and Promising Young Woman, things start to fall apart in the third act, but they aren’t given enough time to land at the end, feeling rushed. This doesn’t give the audience enough time to process all the twists, turns, and shocking reveals made throughout the third act, and while the endings of Saltburn and Promising Young Woman don’t fall flat, they do leave many questions that most likely won’t be answered. Both movies have a good rhythm throughout their first two thirds, which makes the problems with their endings bigger and more noticeable.
Saltburn & Promising Young Woman Both Have Confused Messages & Themes
Perhaps the biggest problem that Saltburn and Promising Young Woman face is the confusing messages and themes they give, especially at the end. The ending of Saltburn has sparked a lot of debate about its views of class and wealth and who are the real villains and “good guys” in the story in terms of social status. Promising Young Woman sees Cassie seeking justice under her terms after the police failed to do their job when Nina was sexually assaulted and then killed herself, but at the end of the movie, the police finally arrest Nina’s abuser (though thanks to Cassie’s relentless work), which many saw as the police being the heroes. While these confusing messages and themes in Saltburn and Promising Young Woman have kept the conversation going, they can end up harming the legacy of both.
