CFF60 review - NINA FOREVER by Ben Blaine, Chris Blaine

Girlfriends don't die. NINA FOREVER marks the feature directorial debut by BEN BLAINE and CHRIS BLAINE, and screened at the 60th CORK FILM FESTIVAL.

NINA FOREVER sounds like a B-movie concept and yet has the ability to fascinate, horrify, entertain and even seduce the viewer with its craftsmanship, creativity and excellent art direction. This is the story of a newly formed couple, Holly (ABIGAIL HARDINGHAM) and Rob (CIAN BARRY), who find their blooming romance disturbed after his dead girlfriend - therefore, ex girlfriend (?) - literally comes back from the dead everytime they start to have sex. This leads to a series of sinister interaction, filled with just as many creeps as it is filled with laughs, when the screenplay's one liners are at their most inspired. 

After numerous shorts and comedy stints with BBC, the BLAINE BROTHERS embark on their first feature venture with NINA FOREVER, a story that uses a genre outlook, more specifically that of horror, to genuinely explore some human concerns of sadness and more specifically those relegated to relationship, with a healthy dose of witty and campy humour. 

It's interesting, however, to note that the film's pivotal couple is at first driven by the common goal to get rid of the titular Nina, played by a show stealing FIONA O'SHAUGHNESSY who mumbles golden one liners like "it's like comparing Linda Lovelace to Florence Nightingale" when teasing Holly's sex life with Rob, and twists and turns her body in ways that don't even look physically possible. Then, the couple is split up by their induvidual goals, awakenings and realizations that are part of the evolution of their characters, drawing up very interesting conclusions on the evolution of relationships in general, that can be universally understood and therefore ring quite genuine even to the most average viewer.

The art direction is commendable. Together with the overall look of the film and the colour palette, NINA FOREVER has an obsession with the contrast created between darkness and red - the latter of course deriving by the key element of blood, that also serves as a central narrative element. Some of the most graphic moments of the film are downright disturbing, also because it is not digitalized and therefore feels real. This choice in particular, together with its many stints in the more campy territory, though never to a mind numbing excess and quite cleverly for the most part, are enough to draw comparisons with SAM RAIMI's EVIL DEAD. 

But there is more. The wild editing style sometimes feels very NICOLAS ROEG while the second part, at its most experimental, daring and almost surreal recalls Czech New Wave cinema - a sensual stamping sequence seems to actually openly reference one of the classics of this wave, CLOSELY WATCHED TRAINS.  This pot pourri of influences is, aside from impressive, one from which the film will benefit with an arthouse audience, one, in other words, that is not necessarily passionate about the horror itself. In fact, despite the way in which the film will possibly be marketed in the future, as it has in the past, will most likely be keen on exposing the horror side of its nature. Which is dishonest, as it might risk NINA FOREVER getting lost in the mix, feeling underwhelming to those whose cinematic interests rely almost solely on shocks and thrills.

NINA FOREVER is not without its flaws. This being the BLAIN BROTHERS' debut, however, the fact that the premise feels a little restrictive in its more than hour and a half length is undeniable. Such a struggle is evident, and is not helped by its narrative structure and its repetitive nature, as the horror sex scenes unfold intermittently, and whatever happens in between risks coming across as underdeveloped filler. Thankfully, there is enough wit and intelligence in the story, especially the surprisingly mature character development, to never quite make the whole excercise seem shallow.