You are here:

Under the Skin

Name: Under the Skin
Director: Jonathan Glazer
Released: 2014
Duration: 108 min

Representation Score

8.2/10

Excellent

2014

Director

Jonathan Glazer

Runtime

108 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

New Showbiz Analysis

Under the Skin is a sophisticated exercise in narrative disruption that prioritizes thematic subversion over explicit identity politics. By dismantling traditional power dynamics, particularly through its radical inversion of gendered ability to act, the film challenges standard perceptions of authority and identity. However, the lack of explicit representation for LGBTQ+ identities and disabilities limits its breadth of social inclusion. Ultimately, the film's strength lies in its ability to use an alien perspective to critique human 'normality' and deconstruct established social hierarchies.

Watch this, not that →

Category Breakdown

Does Under the Skin have LGBTQ+ representation?

Limited

The film explores an extraterrestrial entity's investigation of human biology and physical intimacy but does not explicitly depict LGBTQ+ identities or non-cisgender gender expressions.

How does Under the Skin portray gender?

Excellent

The narrative overturns traditional gender roles by casting a female protagonist as the dominant predator. This inversion places men in a passive, vulnerable position.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Under the Skin?

Good

A diverse urban setting includes men from various socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds. The inclusion of both Black and white men in a non-hierarchical context creates a deconstructed social landscape.

How does Under the Skin represent religion and culture?

Good

The protagonist operates outside human morality, religion, and social contracts, offering a postmodern critique of traditional Western values and social order.

Does Under the Skin include disability representation?

Fair

There is no explicit depiction of physical or neurodivergent disabilities. While the protagonist experiences sensory alienation, disability is not a central character trait or plot device.

Present on Screen

Inverts traditional gender hierarchies by positioning the female protagonist as the active, dominant agent.
Features a diverse, non-hierarchical urban landscape with various ethnic backgrounds.
Offers a unique, non-human perspective to challenge Western moral and social structures.

Limited or Absent

Does not explicitly represent LGBTQ+ identities or non-cisgender gender expressions.
Does not depict physical or neurodivergent disabilities.
Focuses more on biological mechanics than on specific social or identity-based politics.

Official Synopsis

A seductive stranger prowls the streets of Glasgow in search of prey: unsuspecting men who fall under her spell.

How are these scores produced? →