Schoenbrun is telling us that she is one to watch. Her sophomore feature is an obscure yet compellingly watchable mystery whose resolution, or (more honestly) lack of resolution, will haunt you. Visually stunning on a micro-budget, backstory rich with minimalist dialogue, and thematically disturbing as the credits role, I Saw the TV Glow will leave you with more questions than answers and a lingering sense of wonder tinged with sadness.
I Saw the TV Glow touches on a few themes including fascination with cult media, in this case a fictional 90s television show, the kind of fascination many of us can related to. Schoenbrun ties this into existential questions or identity and relationships in fascinating ways. Her story hooks us in with its delicious enigma plot which suggests just enough darkness to give us the chills and make us want to learn more. Then she twists this into something more revelatory, revealing a powerful and relatable ennui that gives you much to sit with after it ends.
Smith and Lundy-Paine have great chemistry and each bring a powerful honesty to their characters that is needed to sell the story. One of the most remarkable things about I Saw the TV Glow is just how much Schoenbrun and her crew pull off with so little.
Perhaps the film's conclusion will be too melancholic for some audiences, or perhaps to oblique. But for those who enjoy their films with an edge and the potential to be understood in multiple ways, I Saw the TV Glow offers some of the best mind fuck potential this side of David Lynch.
I Saw the TV Glow
Starring: Justice Smith, Brigette Lundy-Paine, Fred Durst, Danielle Deadwyler,
Writer/Director: Jane Schoenbrun
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