Misogynist (2015)
Matt Boiselle
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Starring Jonathan Bennett, Jon Briddell, Eve Mauro
Directed by Michael Matteo Rossi
Are you one of those poor souls that have tried their damnedest to figure out the internal wiring of the female species, only to have your own little brain hamster grow tired in his exercise wheel and lie down in his bedding for a recharge? Unlucky in love? Simply looking for some answers as to why women are the way they are and if there is one man who possesses the reasoning for their actions? Well, step inside, curious bystander, and enter the classroom of the Misogynist.
Director (and writer) Michael Matteo Rossi brings forward an interesting take of one man’s narcissistic approach towards teaching willing students the secrets of the female psyche and how to get ahead with all the gals. The movie starts off with a depressed man named Harrison (Bennett) still seething over the impassive dumping he’s received via letter from his now ex-girlfriend. Just when it looks as if Harrison has accepted his role as the fall guy, Trevor (Briddell) steps into the picture. Smooth, smarmy, and armed with a chip on his shoulder against the fairer sex, he offers his “services” to Harrison in the hopes that he’ll use his newly attained knowledge to gain a strong foothold in the act of making all the women he encounters his playthings.
Coined as an antidote to the Fifty Shades display, the movie moves into an underground classroom setting where, over time, Harrison has become Trevor’s A+ student, and the two continue to reel in any prospective initiates of this cherished philosophy. Here is the path laid by a potential genius or a certifiable lunatic – it’s your decision to make.
Trevor’s wealth of information is only eclipsed by his colossal ego and apparent disdain for women in any form or fashion, and his methods of teaching range from low-level lectures to all-out shaming and violent acts of sexual degradation – he makes no bones about his lack of sentiment for the ladies, including his own girlfriend (Alia Raelynn), and is only too happy to pass this info on to students willing to accept it. As time passes, the luster of Trevor’s ways begins to dull, and the true steam behind this engine of hate begins to show itself.
The performances are moderately solid, with Briddell’s work as the egocentric, masochistic-minded professor leading the pack, followed at some distance behind by Bennett – he’s normally played the “good guy” in the chunk of his work, and although it was refreshing to see his mind being turned into that of a remorseless dog in this picture, it took way too long to convince me of such a molding, and that’s considering the film has a relatively short runtime of 77 minutes.
Overall, Misogynist shouldn’t be looked at as a female exploitation-type film but a dive into a man’s brain-pan and his determined approach to convince himself (and others) that what he feels is the acceptable way of treatment towards women, and as such, it flows nicely into the psychological-thriller category. Aside from some lagging in spots, and Bennett’s tough-to-convince portrayal, Rossi gives the audience a character in Trevor that they could love to hate and a film that deserves a watch… just don’t use it as a first date piece of conversation.
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Film
Categorized:Reviews
