The Bay
Directed by Barry Levinson
USA, 2012
PLOT
On July 4, 2009, in the town of Claridge, on the Chesapeake Bay, the residents celebrate Independence Day on the beaches and at the harbor.
In the following days, hospitals and medical facilities begin to fill with people covered in blisters and boils all over their bodies.
What initially seems like an epidemic affecting the population turns out to be caused by a parasite present in the local waters: Cymothoa exigua.
Young journalist Donna Thompson, on her first assignment, will narrate the unfolding of this mysterious event with her crew.
REFLECTIONS
Levinson, famous worldwide as an Oscar winner for the beautiful *Rain Man*, ventures into horror with a mockumentary that leaves no one indifferent.
A film that “plays” with reality by presenting this parasitic invasion, which devours the tongues of fish, replaces them, and feeds on the same food, eventually attacking humans.
In both its screenplay development and filming, the movie takes itself seriously, effectively conveying a sense of discomfort and danger. It visually impacts the viewer, combining the tension of the story with the repulsiveness of its aesthetic: exploding boils, parasites growing excessively and emerging from bodies, human heads being eaten, and bodies covered in bruises.
The documentary style, testimonies, interviews, gut-wrenching screams in hospitals, and the sickening atmosphere that permeates all the film’s locations make it an extremely convincing product, straddling body horror, mass epidemic, and summer catastrophe.
It’s impossible not to feel the discomfort and inevitably scratch your arms and body.
The director also takes the opportunity to critique the nation’s health, political, and military systems: decisions, safety protocols, and actions taken by top officials cause the system to collapse, leading to an inevitable downfall, culminating in an ending (which we won’t reveal for obvious reasons).
The Bay is available on Prime Video and YouTube (both for purchase and freely, though in the original language).
PANDEMONIC MOMENT
When we see the parasite emerge from the neck of an unfortunate victim amidst blood spewing, gut-wrenching screams, and torn flesh, all witnessed by one of the young protagonists.
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