Muristek
This chilly Tunisian debut follows young a female killer who traps her victims by pretending to need a voice app to speak
Here is a stylised and self-aware serial killer drama in black-and-white, broken down into nine “nights”. A young woman called Nada (Nour Hajri) picks up men in bars, playing on their protective gallantry or predatory instinct for weakness, by pretending to be vocally impaired and needing a voice app on her phone to speak. She goes home with them after a few drinks and horror ensues. But Nada finds herself vulnerable in falling for a young woman at her workplace, Noura (Rym Hayouni), who herself begins to realise what is happening in Nada’s after-hours existence.
Black Medusa comes from first-time Tunisian film-makers Youssef Chebbi and Ismaël, who may conceivably be fans of Ana Lily Amirpour’s cult monochrome vampire film A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night. There is a scene when Nada is walking one of her victims back to his apartment and a couple of cats wander into view that reminded me of Amirpour’s very cat-friendly movie. And Nada’s deadpan and implacable avenger might put you in mind of Carey Mulligan’s assailant in Promising Young Woman.
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