merelvanstraten Review of Instinct

Instinct (III) (2019)

It makes you cringe and draws you to it at the same time

[8/10 · 25 October 2019]

This was a movie that made me a bit uncomfortable and kept me on my toes. A movie I definitely wanted to watch until the end. Reading some reviews I came to the conclusion that I had a whole different experience while watching the movie. At first I was intrigued by the personages Nicoline and Idris and the way they connected. You could easily feel the tension in every encounter. Little by little you get to know more and more about the disruptive relationship Nicoline has with her mother. The abuse she experienced (at least mentally, but there are indications the abuse was also physical) has formed her into a person who doesn't know love or how to be loved. In my opinion, this is the reason why she let Idris in. I do think she is aware of this damaged part of her. She just doesn't have a total grip on that part of her and actually kinda enjoys it too. She knows it is wrong and therefore knows that she can control the outcome. In one of the last scenes where she walks through the hallway all I see is a woman on a mission, definitely knowing what she is doing. The moment Idris falls for it, she presses the button and takes over control. So weirdly I've left the cinema feeling somewhat powerful. Another thought I had leaving the cinema, was the fact that in the beginning of the movie Nicoline explicitly didn't want a permanent position. Did let me believe that this event might not be the first time it occurred to her. So in the end she had control the whole time. This thought contributed to the powerful feeling afterwards even more. In conclusion, the acting of Marwan & Catrice was great! They've made sure that the viewer is constantly experiencing tension.. Besides that, the pictures where amazing! Great job from Halina.