Review by Eric Hillis
Directed by: Nathan Hertz
Starring: Melissa Macedo, Michelle Macedo, Gavin Stenhouse, Mary Beth Barone, Annie Ngosi Ilonzeh
Like 2024's critical darling The Substance, Nathan Hertz's Thinestra is another modern reworking of Roger Corman's b-movie classic The Wasp Woman. All three movies feature insecure female protagonists who take a miracle drug in the hopes it will improve their looks and lives, only for it to monstrously backfire. They all owe a debt to Jekyll & Hyde, but of the three movies it's Thinestra that leans most heavily into this comparison, with a young woman turning into a bloodthirsty (and severely hangry) alter-ego via the aid of modern medical science.
Twentysomething Penny is far from obese, but as a photographer's digital re-toucher she can't help but compare herself to the skinny models whose portraits she spends her working hours making even skinnier. She also happens to live in Los Angeles, the world's most image conscious city, and even though it's Christmas it's still too warm to hide away in thick sweaters. Penny has tried diets and workouts regimes, all to no avail. One day she asks a model for tips and is presented with a few tabs of "Thinestra," a new weight loss tablet that hasn't yet been FDA-approved. Ignoring the model's warning about possible side effects, Penny enthusiastically accepts the drug.
Soon after popping her first pill, Penny does indeed begin to experience side effects. Blunner grotesquely oozes out of her body, and she vomits blubber into her toilet. While she's sleeping, a monstrous but notably thinner version of Penny emerges from her toilet bowl and heads out into the night seeking food, which takes the form of an unsuspecting homeless man. When penny wakes the next morning she finds herself covered in blood. Her initial horror quickly fades when she weighs herself and discovers she lost 13 pounds overnight. As Penny continues to take the pills, the bodies begin to wrack up, including those close to Penny. But as Penny's weight loss changes how others treat her, she decides not to think too much about the consequences.
Thinestra will unfortunately find itself compared to The Substance but it's a tighter, more economical version of this story. By making the protagonist a young woman who fears a future of loneliness rather than one who has had a successful career (and who despite her age, looks like Demi Moore), it's also a lot more tragic. The Substance undermined its theme by laughing at its protagonist, but that's never the case here; we're always on Penny's side, even if we can't condone her actions.
The weight loss effect is achieved not through any digital effects but in the most old school manner possible. Penny is initially played by Michelle Macedo and the early stages of weight loss are achieved by some subtle make-up, the sort of female alchemy that puzzles men but which all women are aware of. Then, when the weight loss becomes more drastic, Michelle is swapped out for her twin sister Melissa, who also plays Penny's monster alter-ego. Take that AI! Corman himself would be proud.
The switch is seamless, and if you didn't know better you might assume one of these actresses went down the Robert De Niro Raging Bull route of filming scenes and later returning after gaining or losing a significant amount of weight. The bulk of the film sees Michelle in the main role, and she's very good at portraying a very relatable insecurity. For a horror comedy, Thinestra is surprisingly affecting in parts, such as when Penny breaks down and confesses how modern society's patronising approach to "accepting" plus-size women doesn't make her feel any better about herself.
Thinestra doesn't entirely work. Some of its comedy is a little too campy, the mechanics of Penny and her alter-ego transformation are unnecessarily confusing at first, and it could stand to lean more heavily into its more horrific elements. But it's ultimately held together by two actresses delivering synced-up performances that carry both the film's horror and humour while ensuring its core message is delivered in a very relatable manner.
Thinestra received its world premiere at the Raindance Film Festival on June 20th.
