Retro-horror will never go out of style. Take Anita Rocha da Silveira‘s Barra da Tijuca-set film Mate-me por favor (Kill Me Please). The neon-tinged and pop-infused flick takes on contemporary issues about female sexuality but wraps them in the kind of slasher plot that harkens back to your fave ’80s horror films. Just don’t expect this to be a gory affair. Instead, the affluent high schoolers that populate this Brazilian movie spend their time lounging in the sun talking about boys and wondering whether they could be the next victims of a serial murderer who targets teenage girls.
With a killer central performance by Valentina Herszage as the young wayward teen who becomes obsessed with these dead girls, Kill Me Please feels like a Lynchian dream filtered through a Sofia Coppola film with a dash of Carrie for good measure. Capturing the liberating desires of its young protagonists – and featuring a particularly bonkers quinceañera party that plays like an ’80s synth pop music video – this feature film debut announces a female director’s vision worth watching. To get a taste for what Anita Rocha da Silveira has cooked up, take a look at the official U.S. trailer below scored by a catchy pop banger written for the film by DJ Mamute.
Kill Me Please is now playing in New York City at the Alamo Drafthouse. It opens in Los Angeles at the Arena Cinelounge on September 15, 2017.