Table of Contents
It's not easy coming to a new country. For Iranian teenager Yasamin (Rose Dehgan), part of it involved releasing demonic spirits.
Yasamin and her father (Ashkan Nejati) and grandmother (Maryam Sadeghi) have just arrived in Vancouver. Eager to fit in, she befriends the popular girls, led by Rachel (Chloë MacLeod) and her perfectly coordinated and creepily smiling lackeys (Talisa Mae Stewart, Victoria Wardell). Desperate to fit in and to be seen as a Canadian, Yasamin dyes her hair blonde, which has unforeseen and supernatural consequences.
Writer/director/producer Ava Maria Safai puts out a strong effort. Her film feels like an effortless swing between Mean Girls, Heathers, and all of the nostalgia and angst from being a teen in 2004. Much of the film, and most of where it shines, focuses on Yasamin's struggle between her culture and assimilating into Canada.
The film spends the first two acts on this topic. Between home and school, and Yasamin's inner conflict. The horror aspect doesn't rear its head until the third act. An unfortunate consequence is the suddenness of being asked to be frightened.
The demon released takes the form of loud noises, some static here, and a flashing light there. Supposed to be a metaphor for the pressure of immigrants to assimilate into their new country while giving up their heritage, Safai only suggests this as the meaning, grasping onto these brief flashes of horror elements to make the point.
If we look at Foreigner as a horror film rather than a coming-of-age, it falters. But the time spent watching Yasamin work to gain the approval of her cliquey friends feels so perfectly like an early 2000s teen movie, and is also where Safai's voice is the strongest. The concept of a demon arising from dyed hair is unique in its own right and entirely creative. Dehgan captures every ounce of awkwardness, teenage angst, and fear.
Truly, the film is sharp. It cuts to the bone with its wit and strong vision from Safai. Yasamin feels like she could be you, or someone you know. The long, lingering close-ups on her face as she practices English, speaks to her grandmother in Farsi, or tries to fit in at school, show off a dynamic inner world. It's a chick flick looking back on the heyday, and wants to show the genre with a grown-up lens.
Forigener marks a moment for Safai to share proudly. The film is a time capsule, but also speaks louder to the experience of immigrants in Canada. It's a perfect bubblegum pink that keeps the darkness just below the surface. For a film like Foreigner to mark a feature debut, Safai will only get sharper.
