THE SERPENT’S SKIN – Review by Sarah Ward
The Serpent’s Skin belongs to filmmaker Alice Maio Mackay first, then to her lead Alexandra McVicker, plus Avalon Fast as the latter’s love interest. Mackay’s knack for the ethereal and the sensual in her proudly transgender features, McVicker’s luminous tenderness and patience, Fast’s dynamic sense of assurance: potent individually and entrancing combined, they’re the ink that this dark fantasy romance is etched with. But it plays like a sign that two of the movie’s other cast members, Charlotte Chimes and Scott Major, each have long-running stints on former Australian TV mainstay Neighbours on their resumes — a positive one, no matter your connection to or affection for the recently cancelled Aussie serial, or lack thereof. While The Serpent’s Skin isn’t a soap opera or set in the Melbourne suburbs, it appreciates how infinitely more manageable and enjoyable life is when those around you are truly and committedly in your cul-de-sac or corner.
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