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Vivarium (film)

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Vivarium
Theatrical release poster
Directed byLorcan Finnegan
Screenplay byGarret Shanley
Story by
  • Garret Shanley
  • Lorcan Finnegan
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyMacGregor
Edited byTony Cranstoun
Music byKristian Eidnes Andersen
Production
companies
Distributed byVertigo Releasing
Release dates
  • 18 May 2019 (2019-05-18) (Cannes)
  • 27 March 2020 (2020-03-27) (Ireland)
Running time
97 minutes
Countries
LanguageEnglish
Budget€4 million[2]
Box office$434,030[3]

Vivarium is a 2019 science fiction horror film directed by Lorcan Finnegan, from a story by Finnegan and Garret Shanley. An international co-production between Ireland, Denmark and Belgium, it stars Imogen Poots and Jesse Eisenberg. It premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on 18 May 2019, and was released in Ireland on 27 March 2020 by Vertigo Releasing. The film follows a couple (Eisenberg and Poots) that is forced to care for a child while awaiting release from a seemingly perfect neighbourhood.

Plot

The opening scene depicts the parasitic lifecycle of cuckoos before introducing Gemma, a primary school teacher, and her boyfriend Tom, a handyman. They drive to meet with a real estate agent to inquire about buying a house. The agent, Martin, is oddly off-putting. Nonetheless, they follow him to a suburban development called Yonder, filled with identical houses. There, Martin shows them around house number 9. He asks if they have children, and when Gemma replies, "No, not yet", he mimics her perfectly. After looking around the garden, they reenter the house to find that Martin has vanished. They attempt to leave, but repeatedly find themselves returned to number 9. In disbelief, they drive around the endless, identical streets until they run out of gas.

Out of options, they sleep in the house. The next morning, they try to escape on foot, but consistently return to number 9. They eventually give up and find a box full of tasteless vacuum-packed food left in front of the house. In desperation, Tom sets fire to the house, and they sleep on the pavement. When they awake, another box has been left for them. This time it contains an infant, and the message, "Raise the child and be released." When the smoke clears, they see the house undamaged.

98 days later, the infant has grown to resemble a ten year-old boy who, like Martin, mimics Tom and Gemma. Gemma and Tom sit together in the garden with a pickaxe, waiting to attack whoever delivers and collects the food, but they never see anyone. Tom starts digging a hole in the garden, thinking it may lead somewhere, and becomes withdrawn. In the living room, the Boy sits before the television, which shows bizarre, fractal-like patterns.

Tom comes to believe if the Boy dies, someone might come for the body, and they could force whoever it is to free them, so he locks it in their car, intending to starve it. However, Gemma takes pity and releases it. One day the Boy goes missing, and returns with a book full of strange symbols and images of humanoids with throat sacs. When Gemma asks him to mimic the person who gave him the book, he makes strange, rasping sounds and inflates his throat sacs.

Soon the Boy has matured to resemble a young adult. Tom and Gemma avoid him where possible as Tom becomes sick. The Boy leaves during the day, and Gemma tries to follow him, but always finds herself back at number 9. Tom continues to dig, and finds a body in a vacuum bag. The Boy locks Gemma and Tom out of the house, forcing them to sleep in the car. When Tom's condition worsens, Gemma pleads with the Boy for medicine for Tom, but he replies, "Maybe it's time he was released." When Tom dies in Gemma's arms, the Boy zips him into a vacuum bag and throws it into the deep hole Tom has dug.

After another night locked out, Gemma ambushes the Boy with the pickaxe, but only manages to wound him. The creature hisses and crawls into a labyrinth under the pavement. Gemma follows it and crashes through the door into multiple rooms in other houses with more Boys and several strangers, one of whom has died by suicide.

She lands back in number 9, weak and moaning. The Boy is cleaning the house. He carries her to a vacuum bag and explains that mothers die after raising their sons. She says she is not his mother, and dies as he zips her in. The Boy buries her with Tom and fills the hole, which then disappears. After filling the car with gas, he drives back to the estate office, where an aged Martin lies dying in his chair. Martin gives his nametag to The Boy and then expires, having finished his lifecycle. The Boy puts Martin in a vacuum bag, folds it up, and puts it into a file drawer. He sits down in the chair and waits. When another couple walks in the door, the Boy stands to greet them the same way Martin did.

Cast

Production

In May 2018, it was announced that Lorcan Finnegan would direct Vivarium from a story he co-wrote with Garret Shanley, and that Jesse Eisenberg and Imogen Poots had joined the cast.[4] It was shot in locations in Belgium and Ireland before moving to Ardmore Studios, Wicklow, Ireland.[citation needed]

Release

Vivarium premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on 18 May 2019.[5][6] Shortly after, Saban Films and Vertigo Releasing acquired US and UK distribution rights, respectively.[7][8] It was released in the United States, UK and Ireland on 27 March 2020, with a limited theatrical release and video-on-demand release the same day.[9][10]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, Vivarium has an approval rating of 72% based on 149 reviews, with an average rating of 6.6/10. The site's critics consensus reads, "Vivarium may confound almost as often as it intrigues, but this well-acted sci-fi/horror hybrid has interesting ideas—and explores them with style."[11] On Metacritic, the film has weighted average score of 64 out of 100 based on reviews from 23 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Vivarium". Cineuropa. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
  2. ^ Trenholm, Richard (2020). "Jesse Eisenberg stars in Vivarium, the perfect self isolation horror movie". CNET. Vivarium, which cost 4 million euros (about $4.3 million, £3.6 million or AU$7.3 million).
  3. ^ "Vivarium (2019)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  4. ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (2 May 2018). "'Vivarium': Imogen Poots, Jesse Eisenberg Enter Sci-Fi Thriller; XYZ Selling – Cannes". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  5. ^ "Vivarium". Cannes Film Festival. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  6. ^ Goodfellow, Melanie (22 April 2019). "Cannes Critics' Week unveils 2019 line-up". Screen Daily. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  7. ^ Tartaglione, Nancy (11 July 2019). "Saban Films Acquires Sci-Fi Thriller 'Vivarium' With Imogen Poots, Jesse Eisenberg". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 28 July 2019.
  8. ^ Clarke, Stewart (11 July 2019). "Saban Takes U.S. Rights to 'Vivarium' Starring Jesse Eisenberg and Imogen Poots". Variety. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
  9. ^ Baxter, Joseph (18 February 2020). "Vivarium Trailer: Imogen Poots and Jesse Eisenberg Star in Psychological Horror Film". Den of Geek. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  10. ^ "Vertigo Releasing Announces the UK and Irish Release Date for 'Vivarium' on Digital 27th March 2020" (Press release). Vertigo Releasing. 27 March 2020. Retrieved 27 March 2020 – via Fetch Publicity.
  11. ^ "Vivarium (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  12. ^ "Vivarium Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
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