Nerds That Geek Movie Review: ‘A Wounded Fawn’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the motion picture, ‘A Wounded Fawn’.
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The phrase, toxic masculinity, is one that evokes an immediate emotional response in anyone that hears it, and it makes sense as to why. Because at long last, we have a proper label for the weird and strange behavior that men take part in, and those words also evoke memories of times we’ve either dealt with a dude-bro that felt the need to flex up his ‘wonder’ or saw one attempt to do so in public, in an embarrassing manner of course. Which means that in essence, the emotional response we experience in thinking about that phrase is a combination of irritation and shame. Shame for the person that chose to be that guy in the moment and irritation because… we’ve all grown tired of dealing with this nonsense on a regular basis. 
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Which of course, begs quite the important question in our minds. In that, since this behavior continues to persist and is now being defended or escalated by those who partake in it, how on earth… do we finally put an end to it and move on? Which is a question that of course, has no easy answer. Since this is the kind of problem that is… generational in nature since parents and society tend to nurture it and allow for it to persist. Making the long-term end to this… elusive in nature. But in the here and the now, there has to be more that we can do, and it just so happens… that a brand-new horror film on Shudder explores what kind of immediate work we can do to combat such problems in a supremely unique and terrifying manner, and that makes A Wounded Fawn quite the powerful and poignant motion picture. 

Because this is a story that takes us on a journey, that doesn’t seem to be about such matters at all, at first. Since we are introduced in this film to a woman named Meredith Tanning who is… trying to start over after dealing with a toxic man and a toxic relationship. Which has brought her to a man named Bruce Ernst who appears to be the anthesis to her worries. For he is an intellectual at heart and supremely low key in nature for a change and he’s even taken the time to invite Meredith to a romantic weekend getaway at his remote cabin. Which of course she agrees to in the hopes of possibly having the healthy relationship she’s always sought. But alas, it doesn’t take long for Meredith to learn that Bruce is not what he appears to be. In fact, he is a bloodthirsty serial killer that has chosen Meredith to become his latest victim.

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Which is a plot that doesn’t seem all that grounded in notions of toxic masculinity and how we combat it at a time where it is being flashed about proudly, and other elements in this story seem to reinforce that. Since this is at its core, a horror film through and through. One that brings the scares via intensity and jarring violence and a vibe that is supremely 70s. In fact, in some ways, this feels like a tribute to George A. Romero’s Martin, since the aesthetics of the house, the look of the ‘celluloid’ and the appearance of the characters and even of the blood, since it has that 1970s 3M glow… all harken back to that film and even some of Argento’s work, such as Suspiria. But once we get past the magic of that, make no mistake about it… this is a movie that goes after toxic masculinity and what it has to say about the central theme is quite powerful and fascinating.
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For once there is a moment of separation between Meredith and Bruce, and she is able to fight back and teach him a valuable lesson in thinking he had power over her… Bruce is left to his own devices. And he is robbed of his kill and robbed of the power that he loves to have over women via his toxic mentality and personality and being pulled away from that… and isolated… and eventually confronted regarding his behavior, transforms his character from bold and boisterous monster… to craven little coward. One that struggles to reconcile his dark actions and begs for forgiveness when faced with the raw horror of what he's done. Which makes for a trippy and satisfying third act to the story where the villain gets his Devil’s Due and where the answer to our question finally comes to light.

In that, in order to combat this now, these dude-bros have to be removed from the situation where they think they have power and be forced to reconcile their actions. So, they can understand the impact of their nonsense and feel something other than an urge to flex up and be the ‘Alpha’, and that… could do some wonders in present day and teach these toxic dudes a valuable lesson that could slowly spread and gently begin to enact change. Is that of course, a perfect answer? Heck no. But it is a start, and accountability does go a long way, when done right, and while this movie doesn’t provide a perfect solution, it does deserve a round of applause for saying aloud that the problem exists and for starting a conversation on how we address it now. And it does so in a compelling and unsettling manner, which is of course, what good horror does and in the end, that makes this an important motion picture. One that has a lot to say about a real-world horror that has persisted for far too long.

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