Shapeless is a movie that strides to tackle an important and quintessential topic in society and tell that tale through a horror narrative. The subject is eating disorders and the physical and psychological impact it has on a person.

Our focus is through protagonist Ivy (Kelly Murtagh – Bingo Hell), a singer in the underground New Orleans scene. The pressures of keeping on track with her day job and juggling this with her passion starts to take its toll and Ivy starts to turn inward, focusing on her image and emotional attachment to achieving the ‘perfect’ lifestyle.

It’s clear that the topic is something that Director Samantha Aldana feels close to and pays due time and attention that it deserves. This tied in with Murtagh’s writing attributes equal ties in with the dedication that she has to showing her take on the theme.

The visuals provided by cinematographer Natalie Kingston (The Wolf of Snow Hollow) are also stunning and effective to project the ambience and tone throughout the film.
The issue is that there is a lot of marinating going on with little effect or substance to keep the audience hooked, and as a result, we’re left wilting as a result.

The Prognosis:

While this isn’t an out and out horror, the real life issue that plays centre stage is given due attention. Eating disorders are often left out of the popular conversation and thought of as taboo, so it is a testament to both Aldana and Murtagh to produce a film that takes this on and brings to the fore. What it lacks though is enough validity for it to have a grounding impact. Some more time and attention on this would have made a solid movie, instead it stills a little in mediocre-ville.

• Saul Muerte

Shapeless is currently available on VOD (Google TV, Apple TV and Microsoft Store).