Wrath of Desire (2020)

A well-structured, controversial dark romance.

This is one of the dark-concept GL movies I found interesting. It reminds me of Black Swan and Thelma. The epilogue is rather bizarre, but it managed to pull the audience's attention right away. The moment it started, you knew that it was going to be full of angst, so brace yourself.

The main characters, Phoenix and Jade, are two women from different backgrounds. Phoenix is an openly gay artist who lives a free-spirited life, while Jade is a prosecutor and a Catholic fundamentalist. While Phoenix is keen to pursue a relationship with Jade, it’s not exactly possible. Then there’s Meng Ye, an androgynous man. Though this movie centers on the love triangle between them, there is no romance whatsoever in this movie. Only desire and pain.

This movie has an extensive theme that ranges from jealousy, possessiveness, sexual acceptance, one’s insecurity, and unhealthy conceptions of power and sex. It also explores the analogy between sex and gender. While the theme and the storylines are quite controversial and provocative, the director handles them brilliantly and conveys them through skillful cinematography.

In my opinion, ‘Wrath of Desire’ is not a perfect movie, and it may not be everyone’s cup of tea due to the taboo and dark elements it touches on, like BDSM, self-harm, cheating, grooming, and sex abuse, but it's a well-structured movie. It's a nice blending of reality, fantasy, emotions, and desire into a tragedy-packed story. If you like dark romance or something melodramatic, and if you can handle the triggers mentioned, it’s something to watch.

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