Saltburn: Emerald Fennell’s Stylish Yet Uneven Sophomore Effort
The latest film from Emerald Fennell, the indie darling who won an Oscar for her bold debut Promising Young Woman, once again showcases her ease in shifting between genres, where tone is key to exploring the layers she aims to unravel.
Saltburn was meant to define Fennell’s authorial voice—a critical step for the actress-turned-director, now working with LuckyChap Entertainment, the production company helmed by Margot Robbie, which also backed her debut. This time, Fennell takes aim at the millennial-era ultra-wealthy, leaning into the current wave of nostalgia for early-2000s aesthetics and employing a formula that has worked before: mocking the excess and coldness of the 1% from the inside.
To do so, she turns to the talents of the increasingly iconic Barry Keoghan—known for standout roles in The Killing of a Sacred Deer (Yorgos Lanthimos) and The Banshees of Inisherin—and Jacob Elordi, the rising star recently seen as Elvis in Priscilla (directed by Sofia Coppola) and in Euphoria (directed by Sam Levinson).
However, the formula falls short. Fennell seems to lose focus on the themes that made her debut shine. In Saltburn, the very tone she masterfully handled in Promising Young Woman becomes so scattered that it flattens the narrative or feels disconnected from the film’s central critique.
Now available on streaming platforms, Saltburn still features remarkable performances. Keoghan continues to prove himself as one of the most compelling actors of his generation—his commitment to dark, difficult roles is quickly becoming the stuff of legend. Paired with Elordi’s charisma, the duo makes it hard to look away from the screen, even as the script begins to falter or leans too heavily on shock value to justify its style.
The supporting cast, led by Rosamund Pike, also delivers, and the film’s gorgeous cinematography often elevates scenes enough to make viewers almost forget when the story loses direction—almost.
Second features are notoriously difficult for new directors, and Saltburn is no exception. Still, it’s clear this won’t be the last we hear from the brilliantly ambitious Emerald Fennell.
