The One You Feed Review: A Stylish And Cinematic Indie That Needs To Say More

Release date: December 29, 2020
Running time: 86 minutes
Starring: Drew Harwood, Rebecca Fraiser, Gareth Koorzen 
Director:  Drew Harwood

A Stranger (Koorzen) finds himself injured and being cared for, by a Man (Harwood) and Woman (Fraiser), who are not your everyday people, in a secluded home that time has somehow forgotten.

The One You Feed has a definite style that you can see from the start.  The camera work is very good, with some really beautiful shots of this secluded countryside.  The house is both idyllic and isolated, with a 19th century charm that also gives it a sense of dread.  The whole film is shrouded in mystery and it doesn't give much to the viewer until later in the film.  You spend most of the film trying to figure out what his going on and what happened to the Stranger to have him end up here.  And you also spend a good amount of time trying to figure out the Man and Woman's dynamic, and how the Stranger fits into this and what he can do to survive this ordeal.  The characters, like the setting, are stylized in idyllic 19th century clothing, with the stand out being Rebecca Fraiser.  Her outfits are elaborate and mysterious and her character is a powder keg that is unpredictable.  Koorzen also does a good job as the stranger, imparting a sense of drama and dread throughout the film.  And Harwood as the man doesn't show much emotion and keeps this sense of mystery perpetuated.

However, despite the style and interesting characters, the One You Feed is a slow burning film that is confusing in what it is trying to tell.  The movie tries to keep the mystery surrounding it, but that causes it to not explain much.  And in the film not a lot happens overall, so you have these long stretches of tension without explanation.  The film appears to be exploring sexuality and choices, and the chains that keep people from truly being happy.  And it does so with some exposition, a lot of sexual tension, and explosions of pure passion that are over as quickly as they begin.  But then the film goes back to its mysterious, often poorly explained premise that causes you to return to the relatively slow, idle meat of the film.  And without a better picture of why we are experiencing these scenes, you are left with a sense that the film is all style with little substance.  And don't get me wrong, there is a lot of great style in this film.  The cinematography, setting, and costumes are all surprisingly well done for a small indie.  But overall I wish the film had a clearer, and more well presented message for the audience.

The One You Feed is a stylish indie with wonderful cinematography, a mysterious setting, and a 19th century charm and dread. 

Rent it.

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The One You Feed is available digitally.

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