Aisha Dee plays the main protagonist in “Sissy,” an Australian indie horror-thriller movie from 2022 that was co-directed by Hannah Barlow and Kane Senes. The film tells the narrative of Sissy, a young lady forced to confront her painful past when she encounters her childhood friend Emma.
The story dictates unpleasant occurrences on her trip with old friends as she revisits her childhood memories. Yet as she plunges farther into the shadows, she begins to question her own sanity and fears that she may not be able to stop the terrible forces at work. Aisha Dee really shines in the title character in “Sissy,” which is a dark and atmospheric movie that tackles themes of trauma, memory, and the paranormal.
South by Southwest in 2022 served as the movie’s official debut. Shudder, a streaming service in America, distributed it. Three AACTA Awards were considered for the movie: best picture, best directing, and best lead actress (Aisha Dee). It was hailed as the finest horror movie of 2022 by experts and critics who praised its societal critique and “angst-inducing horror.”
The movie’s introductory scene showcased the awkwardness between the two characters, Cecilia and Emma. Two young closest friends, who had created an unbreakable friendship contract in childhood, had since grown apart.
Cecilia, as an adult, is a successful lifestyle blogger. She runs across Emma again while shopping at a pharmacy, who calls Cecilia “Sissy,” much to the anger of the other. Emma invites Cecilia to her engagement celebration and then to her bachelorette party after sharing contact details.
- Release Date: September 29, 2022
- Genre: Horror, Satire
- Where To Watch: Amazon Prime
- Directed: Kane Senes, Hannah Barlow
- Starring: Aisha Dee, Hannah Barlow, Emily De Margheriti
- Our Rating: 5/5
Also Read: Jeepers Creepers Reborn Review: Is It Worth Watching?
Series Of Unfortunate Events Started A Killing Spree.
Cecilia accepted the invitation and reached Emma and Fran’s house for the bachelorette party and where she was introduced to Tracey and Jamie, Emma’s friends. On the trip, Fran announces that Cecilia’s former grade school bully, Alex, will be accompanying them.
The evening continued until, while driving to the car hit a kangaroo on the way. When they all exit the car to investigate the kangaroo, Cecilia is especially horrified, envisioning the bleeding, spasming creature as a baby Alex. Fran insists on running over the kangaroo’s head to put it out of its suffering.
When they arrive at their destination, Alex treats Cecilia coldly, even dismissing her work as an influencer, while the other guests generally ignore her. Alex had often taunted Cecilia as a child until the latter slapped Alex in the face with a gardening shovel, permanently damaging her cheek.
Their acquaintance had been unlucky and violent for a very long time. Emma subsequently apologizes to Cecilia for Alex’s conduct and pushes them to make amends.
Cecilia overhears Alex, Tracey, and Jamie belittling her the next day while relaxing by a lake. When Emma walks off in a rage, everyone but Alex follows.
Alex questions Cecilia’s presence and snatches her phone, which she then proceeds to broadcast a video on Cecilia’s social media platforms, presumably “exposing” Cecilia’s actual harsh, sadistic character to her fans. Cecilia smacks Alex in the head with a rock while grappling for the phone, effectively killing her.
Cecilia pulls Alex into the forest to bury her prior to actually snatching jewelry from the body. She then starts a live stream in which she gently leads her audience in meditation and replants a plucked tree upon Alex’s grave. As Jamie finds Alex’s body, he escapes, but Cecilia pushes him over a cliff to his death. Emma subsequently drowns while looking for Alex in a river.
Tracey goes back inside the house and confesses that she knows what transpired between Cecilia and Alex. Cecilia shoves Tracey into a bathtub and watches helplessly as she drowns as her hair becomes entangled in the plug. Meanwhile, Alex, who is still alive, rises from her grave, almost blinded by the dirt in her eyes.
Cecilia meets Fran on the road while looking for Emma and expresses her feelings for her. Fran tries to comfort her, but Cecilia speeds and then abruptly breaks, ejecting Fran from the windscreen. Cecilia then runs over Fran’s head to alleviate her agony, just as Fran had done before to the kangaroo.
Alex recovers Emma’s missing phone and calls the police, but really all he can do is scream in pain. The authorities tracked the call just before the cell phone battery died. Cecilia arrives at the residence and repeatedly strikes herself in the face with her phone before starting a live stream in which she begs her followers for aid and claims Alex assaulted her and murdered the others.
Cecilia soon passes out and is awoken by Emma, to whom Cecilia tells the same narrative, but Emma learns the truth after she finds Tracey’s dead body concealed beneath the bed and notices Cecilia wearing Alex’s jewelry.
Cecilia knocks Emma out and ties her up in order to torture her, but Emma manages to free herself and begins to strike back. Emma has the upper hand before Alex reappears and bashes Emma’s face in, mistaking Emma for Cecilia.
Cecilia compliments her coldly, and just as Alex is about to kill her, only then do the cops arrive and fatally shoot her, believing she is the perpetrator. All of Cecilia’s murders are mistaken to be committed by Alex, and she walks free of charges after her sweet revenge.
Also Read: Who Does Tanjiro End Up With In Demon Slayer?
The Verdict
The film’s satirical elements possibly added an unanticipated amount of depth to a film that remained impressively unpredictable until the very end and a bitter end indeed. Outfitted with staggering cinematography and an enthralling lead execution, Sissy ends up being the ideal mix of repulsiveness and parody.
The parody comes in as Sissy’s Instagram fan following witnessing her entire psychotic break, the murders, and the lies. Sissy, an unexpected surprise, delivers a terrifying and amusing bloodbath while also skillfully criticizing the Instagram era. The almost flawless production of Sissy keeps the audience riveted throughout the majority of this unpredictable thrill ride.
Cecilia is not the person she portrays herself to be online; rather, she is a broken person who harbors dark impulses. Cecilia’s weekend quickly takes an unexpected turn when she realizes she will have to spend time with Alex, her former bully, who still harbors resentment for something Cecilia did when they were younger.
A psychotic breakdown poses a threat to much more than just a bachelorette party as the weekend progresses. The film uses long takes, a moody soundtrack, and beautiful scenery to masterfully build tension, allowing the audience to experience a wide range of emotions.
Cecilia is shown filming for her Instagram in her room at the beginning of the movie, which appears to be a neat and peaceful space. When Cecilia stops filming, it becomes clear that the rest of her apartment is filthy, and only this one small space is neatly decorated. This perfectly sets the tone for the movie to come by, revealing Cecilia’s dishonest nature and making fun of social media’s culture of dishonesty.
One of the most stunning parts of this film is the way that it starts as an idiosyncratic dim parody studying the phony idea of vanity-filled influencers or content creators prior to transforming into one of the most fierce and engaging blood and gore movies in ongoing memory.
Heads are obliterated, scalps are torn, and faces are crushed in a film that in some way figures out how to splendidly join the horrendously shocking with the glaringly entertaining.
Dee’s exhibition is very layered, showing an individual who frantically maintains that they should accomplish something beneficial yet can’t sort out some way to do it in a realistic manner. The capable entertainer conceivably switches between portraying a pitiful individual meriting compassion to a wicked maniac, driving the film further into the region of significance.
Sissy’s closure integrates the film in a lovely manner, giving a depressing yet energetic end that doesn’t give the sort of equity one would expect in a standard charge. In general, Sissy is a unique and energizing parody of the time of social media.
Sissy explores the idea that Social networking and the wellness business were previously thought to be beneficial to humanity but are now largely seen as evidence of our ongoing spiral into self-destruction. Sissy’s dread is more personal, founded in character and the fear of reigniting old relationships that one would rather leave in the past. We’re not sure whether one should pity her or root for her.
Sissy is a must-see, commendable piece of cinema due to its impressive unpredictability all the way to the bitter end.
Our Rating: ⭐ (3.8/5).
Also Read: Knock At The Cabin Ending Explained & Changes From The Book
