“ ‘The Perfection’ stars Allison Williams (‘Girls,’ ‘Get Out’) and Logan Browning (‘Dear White People’) as young cello prodigies who, after connecting at a concert in Shanghai, return to their cutthroat music academy to seek revenge on an abusive teacher,” writes Julie Bloom in Wednesday’s (5/29) New York Times. “It’s gruesome, violent, erotic and totally bonkers…. ‘Black Swan’ and ‘The Fly’ have both been invoked in reviews…. #MeToo was very much on the minds of its creators…. They chose classical music as a backdrop, [director Richard] Shepard said, because it’s a world that emphasizes effortlessness and obsession, and yet there’s … all the grueling work it takes to perfect their art…. The two characters can speak through their instruments, but are otherwise silent about their pasts and the costs of becoming stars…. Browning [made] sure there were women of color who helped her prepare for her role and helped teach her the cello, which both she and Williams learned to play. [Producer Stacey] Reiss added, ‘A lot of women who came to screenings came out with that reaction of, wow.’ ”
Posted May 31, 2019
