Marla (2018) Review

Marla (2018) Review

Starring Lisa van Dam-Bates, Travis Johnny Ware, Jason Stange and Katie Hemming, MARLA explores the terrifying account of a girl who goes to get an IUD implanted by a family friend turned doctor who then commits a deranged act. The event has deadly implications for those close to her.

The film is a rather uneven affair with characters seemingly unmoved by the shocking events that befall our lead character. Marla is naturally upset when the person performing sex on her suddenly explodes into a bloody pulp but just moments later it’s like nothing out of the (extra) ordinary ever happened. Her friend Jules (Katie Hemming) is obviously cut from the same cloth as Marla as, upon seeing her friend return home covered CARRIE-like in blood, she never once seems surprised or shocked and simply natters away like with Marla as if they were discussing something mundane instead.

MARLA makes for a peculiar viewing experience. In places the film suffers from being poorly constructed and much of the acting is on the wrong side of being good, however despite such drawbacks, it STILL manages to keep you hooked and remain watching till the end. This is due, in part, to the film’s intriguing premise that MARLA’s lead actor/writer/director van Dam-Bates has concocted. I just had to keep watching to find out what it was exactly that was causing Marla’s sexual partners to explode – literally – during the act. Unfortunately there’s not much offered by the way of explanation but it still makes for a curious variation on the film TEETH from 2007.