Reviews
[TV Review] “The Returned” Episode 3.04: ‘Victor’
This is the episode of The Returned I’ve been waiting for. There were a few deviations from Les Revenants and plenty of revelations were made about various characters. Characters are starting to merge into each other’s storylines, which is a huge plus. The pace has definitely started to pick up a bit and for the first time, I’m actually kind of excited for where the series is headed!
Victor
We finally learn how Victor died in the opening of tonight’s episode. 29 years ago, two men broke into his house and murdered his entire family. The twist in this is that one of the men is none other than Peter (Jeremy Sisto)! This is the same thing that happened in Les Revenants, so it wasn’t much of a surprise to me, but I forgot how early this reveal is made. Things are definitely starting to piece together with Victor, but we have yet to learn why he was on the road the day of the bus crash four years ago. Might this be revealed soon?
Also, Julie’s neighbor Annie was murdered and her tongue was ripped out (her cats were eating it!). I can’t say I’m going to miss her. She was a pain. If there’s one good thing to come from this, it’s that when Nikki (Julie’s cop ex-girlfriend) cam t investigate the murder, she found Victor. She (like all viewers of this show) realized how insane it is that Julie has been keeping a child she just found on the side of the road, so she took him into custody and delivered him to the community center, which is overseen by Peter.
The reveal of Peter being one of the thieves from the night Victor was murdered was perfect (albeit a direct copy of the reveal from Les Revenants) and was a fantastic way to end the episode. I’m not sure what victor is going to do to Peter, but it can’t be good. This was the first episode to give some answers on Victor and it was well worth the wait.
Camille
Over in Camille-land, Tommy interrogates Jack regarding Lucy’s attack (which we still haven’t been given a lot of information on). This leads him to confess to Claire that he was sleeping with Lucy because she claimed to have her “gift.” Claire is flabbergasted that he would ever believe someone could communicate with the dead only while mid-coitus and tells Jack as much. There are many flawed characters making poor decisions on The Returned, but that is what draws me into it. It’s difficult to watch characters make stupid decisions and behave irrationally, but that is how some people react when they are grieving. It is difficult yet fascinating to watch.
Lena’s scar is still giving her trouble, but it leads to my favorite sequence from the episode. In a flashback to the night of the bus crash, we see a younger Lena sneak into the morgue with Ben to see her sister’s body. It is too much for her and she breaks down over the corpse and proceeds to hug it. This is when we are shown that Camille’s corpse had the same wound on her back that Lena has in the present day. This revelation is unique to the American version (I think), and I like it. Some might say that it is over-simplifying the symbolism of Lena’s scar, but I’m okay with the series giving us at least one concrete answer (something Les Revenants rarely did).
Simon
Speaking of revelations, Rowan had a few of her own. After keeping Simon hidden in her attic (and having sex with him while Tommy was at work), she discovers the security cameras Tommy had installed (after Chloe pointed to it). Again, I feel like all happened very quickly, but the impact was great. Rowan’s confrontation with Tommy was like a kick to the guy, made even worse when he tells her that Simon didn’t just die, he committed suicide by walking in front of an 18-wheeler on their wedding day.
Winstead’s character is probably the most heartbreaking on the show. Of all the people that have come back from the dead, Simon is the only one who was someone’s significant other (besides Helen), and he was the only one to commit suicide. Watching her deal with everything, which I would argue is worse than what any other character has had to go through so far, is fascinating. I’m very much looking forward to her confronting Simon next. He has some explaining to do.
Helen
Helen’s storyline this week is all about her questioning the purpose of resurrection. The conversation she has with the priest is fantastic (and Forbes is great in the scene). There isn’t really much else to her scenes, except to reveal that she is now staying at the same community center where Victor is, which could prove to be a dynamite pairing. The two most mysterious/vague characters on the show in cahoots? I’m in.
A faster paced episode with some major revelations and deviations from its source material helped make this the best episode The Returned has had yet. Let’s hope next week’s episode keeps it up!
Random Notes
- Camille is thrilled to see how many nice things people have to say about her on her Facebook page.
- More black sludge is coming out of Helen’s sink. It’s really gross.
- Julie still doesn’t understand the seriousness of her kidnapping offense. She should have turned Victor over to the police in the first episode.
- Michelle Forbes needs more screen time. She is amazing and I love her.
- Rowan tells Chloe that Simon is actually an angel and she believes it. Are children that gullible? I mean, Chloe was smart enough to spot a security camera in her fire alarm when Rowan couldn’t. So I feel like Chloe would be smarter than that.
- Love that Claire admits she might not know if Lena was hurt by somebody. You always see parents in film/TV be overly protective and claim to know where their teenager is at all times so it was refreshing to see a TV parent admit that they aren’t perfect.
- Claire makes note that Camille is eating “again.” I noticed how Simon was eating a lot in his titular episode, and now Camille is. Is there significance to that? I think so!
- Next week’s episode is titled “Tony and Adam.” Some of you might not know who those characters are (unless you read my reviews), but you will be happy to find out next week!
Avalon Fast’s Camp looks to be part of that recent trend of witchcraft stories, yet what sets this movie apart is its approach to magic. So often, the presence of witches would suggest a lot of destruction (in both the past and the near future). By no means is Camp short on hurt as provocation. In an energizing change of pace, though, the spells enacted by this one particular coven bring the complete opposite of pain.
Camp finds itself in harmony, not contention, with its dreamlike parts. Even when a scene comes across as straightforward, there is still something rather surreal in its presentation. Take, for instance, that game of truth or dare that prefaces the story’s inciting incident. Zola Grimmer’s character is pressed to dish out a juicier truth that, ultimately, goes on to make her audience feel both engaged and uncomfortable. The whole quality of this moment is similar to that of our most mortifying dreams.
As the title indicates, the movie takes place at a summer camp. This, of course, is only after Grimmer’s character, Emily, has been directly involved with another person’s death. This time, it’s the loss of a loved one, as opposed to a stranger, that sends the protagonist into a deep and guilt-ridden depression. Emily’s father (Michael Tan) then helps turn things around by signing Emily up to be a camp counselor. That’s when the movie enters more familiar territory, in terms of genre, but astonishingly, Fast doesn’t ever settle into the same-old routine that we now associate with these sorts of camping trips.
Zola Grimmer as Emily in Camp.
Grief and trauma are always on display here. From Emily becoming something of a death magnet in her life, to the other camp counselors working through their own private issues, this movie doesn’t ever avoid personal tragedy and suffering. However, these components of the story are handled with a kind of care that doesn’t come up often enough in modern horror. Rather than sensationalizing or exploiting Emily’s pain, there is an aware attempt at helping her. And not just using the cinematic tactics that would force the character to confront her fears, either.
Camp has the setup for a more traditional-acting horror movie. A bunch of young women ominously head off into the woods, unaware of all the potential terrors that could be waiting for them. Even the trailer implies a sinister movie. In contrast, though, Fast goes the opposite way of addressing Emily’s problems. Most importantly, this new direction is without the act of creating more trauma for the main character.
What sounds unfeasible, especially for a movie marked down as horror, is actually quite the refreshing approach to a very common concept nowadays. Yes, simple revenge has its perks and fans, as does the paring down of casts until only one person is left standing. But opting for restoration, as opposed to destruction, in dark scenarios is surely also worth exploring.
Deeply felt, textured, and always self-questioning, Camp is an extraordinary movie that goes to some unexpected places. The gorgeous presentation alone is one rife with beautiful nature and spotted with haunting, otherworldly imagery. Performance-wise, Grimmer makes a tremendous debut here; she and co-star Alice Wordsworth have this growingly incandescent chemistry that lights up all the right parts of the story. Overall, Camp is a pleasant surprise that is light on conventional horror but never low on compassion for its characters.
Camp plays in select theaters on June 26.
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