Feelin’ sad about going home, Beau?

2023’s Beau Is Afraid, is well, a trip. It just might be one of the strangest films I have ever seen, and that is saying something. Director Ari Aster has already proved to be one of the best horror minds of the decade. With his two earlier movies, Hereditary and Midsommar, showing their value in their own creepy worlds. Yet, Beau is different. Not in a bad way, or even a good way. In a sense, Beau is the weird uncle that always shows up for thanksgiving, an evening with him is tolerable, but you’re not going to invite him over for the family barbecue. So, how does Beau Is Afraid stack up on the Cent Score? Let’s find out on Gaber’s Two Cents.

The film’s opening 40 minutes is it’s best by far. The sheer chaos of this world that Beau inhabits is both bleak and undeniably hilarious at the same time. Beau is a pathetic, sad, and frightful man that has real issues making decisions for himself. This mix of character traits in juxtaposition with the murderous anxiety ridden world that surrounds Beau is extremely entertaining, and it provides the start of the film with some of the most hilarious gags I have seen in recent memory. They are so bizarre and so funny in fact, that writing about them in this review simply would not do them justice. Unfortunately, all the fun to be had ends when the film transitions into its second act.

Have you ever run a marathon? How about using the stairs when traversing up to the fiftieth floor of a skyscraper? This is what comes to mind when reflecting on Beau Is Afraid after the opening act. It becomes an anxiety inducing stamina test, where you occasionally have to pause the film and go, “How is there still two hours left?”. I’m not even saying it’s bad per say either, it’s just something. While this might all sound a tad confusing, it’s exactly how I felt when attempting to finish this film.

You might be asking, why not just turn it off and watch something else? Here lies the issue, you have to know where Beau ends up. You have to know where all of this is going and how it will finish. Which is a positive and a negative at the same time. While I don’t think that this feeling is what director Ari Aster intended for his viewers, it does seem like he is very well aware of the stamina test he is putting his audience through.

I’m not saying that all of Ari Aster’s films have to be like Hereditary or Midsommar, and I admire the swings that Aster took with this film. It’s just that you can only swing and miss so many times before realizing, maybe you were meant to play another sport. I could go on and on about this film, but even that would exhaust me even further, almost as exhausting as finishing it’s last two hours.

Beau Is Afraid isn’t afraid of what it is, in fact it wears it on its sleeve. Yet, besides a stellar opening that frightens and entertains, there just isn’t much more that can be said about the film’s other portions. Critics and fans have gone on to call it a masterpiece, which I can understand. However, Beau Is Afraid simply was not for me. The opening of film did just enough from landing on our lowest score, so hats off to you Aster, you sure do know how to make a first impression. All that and more is why Beau Is Afraid received this particular Cent Score

Cent Score: 2 Cents

A lackluster experience, offering nothing beyond mediocrity.

Thanks for checking out this week’s review on Beau Is Afraid. Feel free to tap the thumbs-up button and leave a comment below. Don’t forget to subscribe if you want to be notified of new posts each week. See you all next time on Gaber’s Two Cents.