The Electricity in Rebecca Thomas' ELECTRICK CHILDREN
Rating: ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️
Can Rock & Roll get you pregnant? In Rebecca Thomas’ world it can.
The heroine of Electrick Children is a sheltered 15-year-old named Rachel who lives in a religious Amish-like commune. Mesmerized by the tape player used to record her first confession, she sneaks out one night to listen to the player and finds a blue cassette that contains a cover of Blondie's 'Hanging On the Telephone'. She listens to her first-ever rock & roll song and feels the power of God flow through her. Months after this experience Rachel finds out she's pregnant, and when forced into an arranged marriage by her parents, she and her brother leave their commune for Las Vegas to find the man who sings on the miraculous cassette tape, coming across a group of sinful skaters and bunch of dead ends instead.
Writer and director Rebecca Thomas' eccentric and compelling debut feature is a magical piece of work that is empathetic, gorgeously shot, and meticulously crafted. It’s strange in the best way possible — dreamy, vague, intriguing and immersive. No character is reduced to a villain or a stereotype — especially Rachel, who could simply be seen as naive or gullible for her lack of knowledge on the nonexistence of immaculate conceptions.
Julia Garner's portrayal as an innocent young girl experiencing the world beyond her sheltered home for the first time is one that only comes from an actress with natural abilities. Garner makes the character fully formed and real, which is pretty hard considering how cartoony she could come across. Her frantic blue eyes take in all the foreign things around her with both cautiousness and devout trust.
Beautiful and almost whimsical. Electrick Children is a movie that doesn't overshare which causes it to create a childlike curiosity about it. The story is private and intimate, one that doesn't give the audience the details that would make it become too real. You may not know exactly what you feel after watching Electrick Children, but you’ll be glad to have had the experience.
Emilee Araujo is a student, cinephile, and sometimes writer. She currently attends Texas State University majoring in English with a film concentration. You can catch her at your local taqueria eating tacos or follow her on Instagram @pan.dullce.