‘Beau Is Afraid’ review: Dir. Ari Aster (2023)

In just his first two films, Ari Aster has managed to achieve the kind of auteur autonomy usually reserved for your veterans of the business. Those two films, Hereditary and Midsommar both came out of the gate and instantly created a swirl of excitement among genre fans for their unique and individual visions of dread and shocking horror. They also both developed dedicated followings from fans of both the A24 studio staple and the horror genre, with Aster quickly placing himself as a filmmaker to watch out for. 

Such is his relationship with A24 that his latest film, the not-really-a-horror-not-really-a-comedy Beau If Afraid – an odyssey of one mild-mannered yet paranoid man’s (Joaquin Pheonix) journey trying to make it to his mother’s (Pattie LaPone) funeral – feels like someone operating with very little studio interference. Whatever notes may have been given along the way certainly do not feel as though they have hampered this very singular vision, with Beau Is Afraid representing Aster at his most unruly, in a manner that is often beguiling, bewildering and yet utterly enrapturing. 

Beau’s journey is one drenched in surrealism, as he ends up in one ridiculous situation after the other, trying to get back home after his mother is tragically killed by a falling chandelier. Guilt-ridden for not being with her – a feeling his mother, we come to learn, has constantly driven into her son throughout his life to the point where he is crippled with anxiety – Beau’s journey is never an easy one, as he and the audience are constantly thrown into positions where we question the very nature of what we’re seeing.

How much of this is playing out in Beau’s mind is never made clear, as building to a ‘twist’ ending is never part of Aster’s MO – even if he does have a couple of surprises up his sleeve come the final stretch. Instead, this is much more of an experiential exploration of that key theme: guilt. It is a theme that is present in both Hereditary and Midosmmar, with all films relating to one another when it comes to expressing both the debilitating and world-shattering sensation that grief and guilt can conjure whenever you come face to face with them. 

Beau particularly relates to his debut feature Hereditary, in that much of the guilt and grief is wrapped up in a relationship between a mother and her son. Whereas Hereditary is perhaps more straightforward and much more in the key of horror, Beau Is Afraid’s a more abstract approach to both genre and narrative makes it a very interesting companion piece. It is often very funny, but also nerve-shredding in its depiction of paranoia and confrontation. You’ll be left squirming in certain sequences, and then utterly baffled the next. It’s odd company to be in, but a fascinating one all the same. 

The unpredictable nature of the film can often be bewildering, not to mention a little testing over its near three-hour runtime. It can try your patience at times in its dream logic and particularly the final stretch which drives home its thematic concerns in a repetitive fashion. But even in these moments where you begin to notice agitation set in, rarely does the film feel superfluous in its imagery, no matter how bizarre it ends up being. The strong thematic throughline gives everything a solid spine on which to hinge, with Phoenix’s wide-eyed bewilderment the ideal guide for the adventure. 

Beau Is Afraid is Aster off the leash, working with unbridled energy in a space of tragedy, comedy and horror to an often very funny and disarming effect. You will likely walk out a bit dazed and confused, but as time passes and the absurdity sinks in, there is no denying the sense that you’ve been on a singular experience that’s hard to shake. Rarely weird for weird’s sake and thematically compelling, Beau Is Afraid is another example of Aster’s ability to place you in an uncanny and occasionally uncomfortable environment, only to come out of the other side with the sense that you are the richer for it.

Beau Is Afraid is released in cinemas on 19th May 2023.