We were joined on the Popternative show by Midori Francis (Grey’s Anatomy, Dash & Lily), Danielle Macdonald (The Tourist, Dumplin’), Madeleine Madden (The Wheel of Time, Dora and the Lost City of Gold), and filmmaker Natalie Erika James (Apartment 7A, Relic) to discuss the new body-horror film Saccharine.
Premiering in theaters on May 22, Saccharine follows Hana (Francis), a heartbroken medical student who becomes tormented by a sinister force after participating in an underground weight-loss trend involving the consumption of human ashes. From Natalie Erika James, Saccharine delivers a timely and deeply personal exploration of body image, self-worth, and obsession through a supernatural body-horror story.
Natalie explains that Saccharine uses body horror and supernatural elements to capture the loss of control often associated with the pressures of eating disorders and body dysmorphia. “I think body horror is almost inherent in the subject matter because it is so much about a transformation surrounding a body and the kind of anxieties attached to that. So I think that was always going to be a very handinhand kind of thing. But at the same time, the supernatural element did come early. I was thinking about the experience of being in the grips of something like a eating disorder and how often things can feel out of your control and that there’s some some [dark] presence [waiting] to take over.”
Danielle plays Josie, Hana’s close friend and fellow medical student, who becomes increasingly concerned for Hana’s well-being as the dangerous diet begins to take a serious toll on her health.
“She’s the ride or die but she also cares about her friend and she wants her to be okay. And I think trying to find that balance is always difficult when you are the fun friend, the upbeat friend, the one that’s trying to get your friend to try new things. It’s difficult to find the balance of how to have a very real conversation with someone that’s not ready to have that yet. And Madori and I were lucky enough that we had the real heart-to-heart conversations towards the end of the film. So we were really comfortable with each other. We knew each other and we just got to play until we had to really get into it.”
Midori shares that Hana’s house became an important character in the film itself, serving as a central centerpiece throughout the story: “Hana’s house is sort of, like, mythic. I feel like Hannah’s house is a character in this movie. The house [we filmed at had] tight corridors and I loved the house. [It had its] own [darkness], even just the lighting and the vibe of the house was so dark.”
Watch the full conversation below.
Saccharine releases in theaters May 22.
_