Review: The Lure (Córki dancingu)

"Wish I could be part of that world," Ariel famously sang in The Little Mermaid, though as the balls-to-the-wall bonkers Polish musical horror fairy tale The Lure notes, what it takes to be part of that world, especially if you're a girl, may leave something to be desired.

The Lure may be a fairy tale, but screenwriter Robert Bolesto and director Agnieszka Smoczynska remind viewers that pre-Disney mermaids were often treacherous creatures luring men to their deaths. Sisters Golden (Michalina Olszanska) and Silver (Marta Mazurek) realise this, singing "Nothing to fear, we won't eat you, my dear" to young musician Mietek (Jakub Gierszal), whose song compels them to surface. Mietek and his family, singer Mom (Kinga Preis) and drummer Dad (Andrzej Konopka), are entranced by the mermaids as is the boss (Zygmunt Malanowicz) of the nightclub in which the family works. How can they not be? The sisters are unashamedly naked, resembling Barbie dolls with the patches of flesh where their genitals should be. And, when splashed with water, they sprout long, eel-like tails. How could the Boss resist hiring them as an act for his club?

Billed as "The Lure," the sisters are instant hits, whether naked with their tails hanging over the side of an oversized champagne glass or standing on two legs and belting out an electro-punk song. Remaining on land provides complications for both sisters. Golden can't quite restrain her natural urge to feed on the men, who come to leer at her and her sister. Silver, meanwhile, harbours a not-so-secret crush for Mietek. Their romance is the one linear narrative in this smorgasbord of a film, and provides its most potent commentary on the dangers inherent in any relationship.

Though The Lure can also be read as a critique on the abuse and exploitation that immigrants face, it's the sacrifices that Silver is willing to make in order for Mietek to accept and view her as a human rather than a fish that drives the second half of the film. Perhaps there is no more striking image in The Lure than that of Silver on an operating table next to a girl whose legs she hopes will be her own - she is literally and figuratively ready to be less of herself in order to be part of Mietek's world.

On the one hand, one can rightly criticise the filmmakers for throwing everything and the kitchen sink into The Lure - there are numerous seemingly random characters, plot points, and stylistic elements that are barely related to the albeit fragmentary narrative. Smoczynska's aesthetic is a consistently striking whirl of images that shouldn't work, but somehow does. On the other hand, its relentlessness can be exhausting and its reliance on visuals proves particularly detrimental in the very slack middle section. Nevertheless, this is an exuberant and auspicious feature film debut from Smoczynska, whose career is sure to be an interesting one to track.

The Lure

Directed by: Agnieszka Smoczynska

Written by: Robert Bolesto

Starring: Marta Mazurek, Michalina Olszanska, Kinga Preis, Andrzej Konopka, Jakub Gierszal, Zygmunt Malanowicz, Magdalena Cielecka