Bella Thorne is one of several members of young Hollywood who grew up within the Disney machine. Alongside Zendaya, Thorne starred in the show Shake it Up and amassed a legion of fans when she was still a teen. Transitioning from Disney starlet to a respected grown-up performer can be tricky, but whereas her former co-star Zendaya has thrown herself into big budget productions, Thorne has been more at home in the independent arena. Within this area of film, Thorne has carved out a career for herself, with films such as Infamous and Habit being two of her most interesting projects. Both feature elements of darkness and appear to have placed Thorne on the path to her latest film, Saint Clare.
Directed by Mitzi Peirone, Saint Clare is based on the novel, Clare at Sixteen, from writer Don Roff. Thorne stars as the titular Clare, a high-school student hiding a troubling secret. Whilst by day Clare attends classes and navigates a cesspool of teenage toxicity and hormones, once the final bell rings, she has a rather unique brand of afterschool activity. Whereas her peers are attending drama class or working jobs, Clare instead hunts and kills the criminal contingent of her small town. However, after one of her targets is later revealed to have deep roots in an especially horrific crimewave, she realises she might have gotten in over her head.
Some will compare Clare’s mission to that of famed TV serial killer, Dexter, but thankfully there are enough points of difference in both the script, and Thorne’s performance, to keep the two separate. Other than their shared ethos of punishing the bad guys, the two have entirely unique backstories and reasons for their actions.
Thorne is fantastic in the role of Clare. The character shares DNA with several of Thorne’s past roles and she uses that as a cheat code to unlock Clare’s full potential. One of the most important aspects of Clare is that she could believably be murdering men twice her body mass, and Thorne more than delivers. Clare uses her girlish charms to lure in her predators before switching into lioness mode and mauling them. Thorne does great work at creating the meak beauty facade, whilst leaving just enough harshness to signal to the viewer that an inner strength lies within. Her victims are oblivious, distracted by her looks, which she uses to her advantage to create an environment in which she can be the victor.
Given the sheer amount of sequences featuring Thorne fighting, the actress has clearly worked hard behind the scenes to ensure she is a convincing warrior. This work has paid off as Thorn has rarely been more ferocious. The choreography, whilst not as eye-wateringly insane as a film like John Wick, is solid and gives Thorne the opportunity to show off her training. Another key component to Thorne’s performance as Clare is that she is quiet and calm. In recent years, Thorne has been drawn to wilder and louder characters, but as Clare she keeps her performance more insular. It really is brilliant work from the star and Saint Clare is sure to become one of her calling card roles.
Although Mitzi Peirone’s debut feature, Braid, leaned heavily into horror, Saint Clare is more of a mystery thriller. An easy comparison would be Rian Johnson’s Brick, though Peirone injects several elements of fantasy, primarily Clare’s g- to source of intel of who to target next. She receives her information via a conduit from the other side – Mailman Bob (Frank Whaley) – providing a strange An American Werewolf in London angle to the story. His inclusion allows Clare a sounding board and an opportunity to be herself as he is the only person privy to the real her. The scenes between the pair also allow a little lightness and humour to poke through the dark cloud that shrouds everything else. Slick and stylishly shot, Perione ensures that the visuals land somewhere between Gothic fantasy and Southern teen noir. The look of the film is almost as twisty as the mystery Clare finds herself embroiled in, and when projected onto the big screen, is a world that is easy to be drawn into.
Featuring one of Bella Thorne’s finest performances to date, Mitzi Peirone’s sophomore effort swerves the second film curse, and is equal to, if not better than, her debut, Braid. A Southern Gothic teen noir with horror affectations, Saint Clare is a wickedly rich and rewarding watch.
Saint Clare
Summary
Far from a ‘Dexter: The Teenage Years’ that the synopsis might suggest, Saint Clare is a richly drawn noir with dark roots and ideas.
Saint Clare was reviewed at Pigeon Shrine FrightFest 2024. Saint Clare will be released on digital via 101 Films later this year.
