Clayface Review – Lights, Cameras, Body Horror Action!

Clayface is Gotham’s latest Bat Bad guy stepping out of the shadows for his moment in the spotlight, with a revenge origin story that leaves the streets battered, bruised and bloody

Batman has the best undisputed rogues’ gallery of any superhero across both DC and Marvel’s big-screen universe offerings. We’ve seen movie versions of Bane, The Joker and Scarecrow, to name a few. But in all my years of Bat fandom, I’ve never thought, ‘I wonder what Clayface’s origin story is’. In fact, of all the villains available, I had no idea why this was the project DCU CO head James Gunn chose to approve so early into the fledgling new universe. As a DC fan, I knew little about Clayface and cared even less, so with very low expectations, I approached DC’s first foray into horror. And I am very happy to say it was a gorefest I thoroughly enjoyed.

The first thing I’d like to clarify is that this is not a horror movie. There are no jump scares, no masked killers running around, no ghosts, demons, or possessions, and it doesn’t induce any fear or terror. The only thing it has in common with traditional horror movies is the amount of blood and gore, of which there is plenty here.

Clayface is a body horror movie. Rather than fear, this subgenre focuses on body transformation, painful mutations and a character losing control of their humanity. One of the most popular recent body horror movies is The Substance, starring Demi Moore, which I really enjoyed (except for the third act). I wonder if marketing this film as a horror movie might affect its eventual box office. I’ve heard horror fans complain it’s not scary, and non-horror fans stay away because they don’t like the scary genre. Either way, that would be a shame, as this is a surprisingly good origin story, featuring one of my favourite themes- Revenge!

Clayface stars Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen, an actor with a fast-rising profile, a true rags-to-riches story. A man who has worked hard for his success. He’s on the cusp of his big Hollywood break, having just been nominated for an Academy Award and has studio offers coming in from every direction. An unfortunate chance encounter with a mob boss’s wife in a nightclub sets in motion a spiral that eventually sees him lose everything he had worked so hard for.

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In his desperation, he turns to an experimental doctor, Caitlin Bates (Naomi Ackie), who is working on untested medical procedures, incorporating nanotechnology and AI to create a system capable of performing unbelievable repairs to human injuries. This procedure hasn’t been tested on humans, but Matt won’t let that stop him from partaking in this dangerous trial. At first, the results are incredible, and with every treatment, things get better. But as you would expect, soon cracks start to show, and things gradually unravel as his manic desire for justice, love and revenge begins to cloud his judgment, sending his moral compass into a spiral as his newfound abilities grow.

The budget for this film was reportedly very low for a superhero movie, about $30-$40 million, which bodes well for its ability to turn a profit. And rather than make the film feel less, it made it more of an intimate experience. It’s presented a Gotham that still felt familiar but different enough to have its own identity. The lead characters’ performances hold proceedings together impeccably, their connection being the emotional tie of the film, and both Tom and Naomi deliver tension and chemistry in spades.

Clayface is a brave swing in this genre by writers Mike Flanagan and Hossein Amini and director James Watkins, which, in my opinion, pays off. Hats off to James Gunn for greenlighting this slightly niche project, which carves out its own corner of the DC universe. It delivers an origin story that’s a riveting and refreshing gore-packed revenge tale that’s transferred perfectly from the animated world to the big screen. It’s made me care about a villain I had very little interest in and has left me wondering just how The Batman will take on this formidable big-screen version of Clayface, which is a clash that, personally, I can’t wait to see

Clayface is in Cinemas now. Watch the latest trailer here