“Shiva Baby” - Film Review
In recent years, there has been an attempt to redefine and expand the definition of a horror movie. Films like Get Out and @zola are excellent examples of how to broaden the genre. Horror is no longer just slasher movies with men in masks lurking around corners; it is now encompassing more everyday, real-life horrors. Even the terror of running into your ex-girlfriend and current sugar daddy at a shiva.
That’s the general plot of Emma Seligman’s impressive debut, Shiva Baby. The movie begins with college senior Danielle (Rachel Sennott) waking up in her sugar daddy Max’s (Danny Deferrari) apartment. She’s running late to a shiva (we don’t ever find out who died) where she meets her parents (Fred Melamed and Polly Draper). Among the other guests are her ex-girlfriend Maya (Molly Gordon), Max, Max’s wife (Dianna Agron), and their infant child. Danielle sees all of these people in the same room, and her anxiety skyrockets. The movie takes place over the course of about two fictional hours, and the action occurs almost entirely in one home. It is a brisk 78 minutes, and that’s a perfect runtime. Another moment of this familial, heart-racing anxiety would have been too much for the audience to handle.
In a movie that is so specific, the experience still feels universal. The number of people who have experienced this exact scenario is probably slim to none, but Seligman’s script captures the universal language of family events. The claustrophobia that accompanies them, the in-your-business extended family members, and the few people who act as a reprieve from the weight of it all. Shiva Baby invites the audience into a world that may not be their own, but it’s one they are immediately familiar with. Everyone watching will have experienced some version of how Danielle has to keep explaining what her major is, who she’s dating, why she isn’t dating, and what she’s doing after graduation. It is so achingly and anxiety-inducingly familiar.
Utopia, Pacific Northwest Pictures
Shiva Baby began as a short film of the same name, and the added length gives a wonderful depth to Danielle and the relationships she has. The mother-daughter interactions are particularly interesting to watch unfold, as is seeing Danielle reconnect with her ex-girlfriend. As a character, Danielle is messy in a way that will feel relatable to many young women. She’s twenty-one and trying to figure out the dynamics of sex, power, self-worth, autonomy, and becoming a full person in the world. The audience also has the opportunity to watch Danielle try to figure out where she fits in between the image of herself her parents see and the image she sees.
Without the centering performance of Sennott and the impressive writing and directing from Seligman, Shiva Baby would probably get lost somewhere with the rugelach. Instead, Seligman’s personal experiences make this movie soar, instantly ringing true for so many. The tension and the unsettling score may make this a horror movie for some, but for those who relate, it feels a bit like a celebration.
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