Men

Alex Garland has quietly established himself as one of the most innovative directors around since 2014's supreme Ex Machina, but may have taken his first misstep with this well-intentioned but poorly executed thriller.

Men tells the story of Harper (Jessie Buckley), a woman seeking solace in the English countryside after enduring a personal tragedy that is gradually revealed over the course of the film's events. Were he not such a serious fellow, Garland might have called his screenplay 'The Airbnb from Hell' because that is essentially the crux of what happens from the moment his protagonist checks into her rural retreat.

In a bizarre turn of events, our heroine is stalked by a series of men that are quaintly all played by Rory Kinnear, including - and I kid you not - a pre-pubescent child and a naked man with shrubbery growing out of his head. Those familiar with Garland's previous work - particularly the more recent Annihilation - won't be surprised by this, though the film's crescendo might shock even the most seasoned of fans.

I guess the film is attempting to weigh in on the gender politics that have been so prevalent within mainstream media since the #MeToo scandal, and that's all good and well I suppose. But what makes Men a jarring experience is that it has very little to say about such matters (that we didn't already know) and does so in such a frankly ridiculous way that it's a chore to take it seriously. Perhaps this is Garland's first attempt at comedy, in which case bravo.

Alas, I suspect this is not the case and so have to assume that Men is a rather half-baked attempt to weigh in on a matter that is far too complex and important to entertain such tokenism. Still, this is certainly watchable due in no small part to the efforts of Buckley and Kinnear, who bring their usual understated excellence to proceedings. It's just a shame that the film as a whole isn't more befitting of their work.