PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Body swap horror goes back decades but was popularized in the 1970s by David Cronenberg (The Fly 1986)(check out our tribute article to David here). We’ve seen the transference of souls through all different mediums and purposes in horror. But few modern takes on this trope have been done as intensely as Suitable Flesh. Let’s take a look at what makes this movie one of the most shared gems of 2023.
Suitable Flesh is written by Dennis Paoli (Re-Animator 1985) based on the 1937 story The Thing On The Doorstep from H.P. Lovecraft. It’s directed by Joe Lynch (Mayhem 2017) (read our interview with Lynch here) and stars Heather Graham (Horns 2013), Judah Lewis (The Babysitter 2017), and Barbara Crampton (Jakob’s Wife 2021). The story follows a psychiatrist with an idyllic life who becomes obsessed with a patient who claims that something evil is possessing his body. From there we get a twisted tale of body swapping that knows when to surprise the audience, and when to use the reveal to ratchet up the tension.
Suitable Flesh not only embraces what it is, it bathes in its juices. It’s part possession like Shivers or Rabid, and part torrid punishment like It Follows. The demon of sorts can only enter the body after sexual transmission or deep eye contact and particular phrases. While it seems easy to avoid such a predicament, the temptation in this movie is turned up to ten.
Amidst the parade of blood and sex, Heather Graham fills the screen with charisma and commands attention in every scene. Having the balance of subdued characters taken over by a larger-than-life entity, all of the main actors get a chance to really stretch themselves, and they all shine with that range. The clock is constantly ticking in Suitable Flesh, and every transformation is both titillating and terrifying.
The characters are well defined, the humor is dark, everything is cleanly shot, and the SFX feel all too real. Joe Lynch has become a modern face of indie horror for diving all the way into his subject matter, and Suitable Flesh does just that.
This possession throwback is available for streaming right now on Shudder and is available to rent and own on digital platforms. It’s even available on VHS!
