Skin focuses on Bryon Widner, played by Jamie Bell, a young man raised by white supremacists and becomes a racist skinhead in his adult years. At one rally, he meets a woman who was reluctantly working at the event named Julie, played by Danielle Macdonald, and the two begin dating, and Bryon gets closer to his children. With Julie’s help, Bryon comes to his senses about his way of life and cuts ties with everyone he was formerly so close with. Though when his former parental figures, played by Vera Farmiga and Bill Camp, try bringing him back go his old life, Bryon tries to end thing once and for all.
The film is based on a true story and is named after the fact that Widner went through a series of painful operations to get all the facial tattoos symbolizing his former hatred removed, which is seen at various points scattered throughout the film. While the actual story itself is really fascinating, the film only scratches the surface about what makes it so intriguing. Particularly when it comes to displaying the consequences of Bryon’s association with the white supremacists who raised him and how it affects others.
While it’s ultimately his relationship with Julie that drives him to starting a new life, there’s never really a moment where it seems like he comes to a realization of how badly he hurt others. He just spends a lot of time with Julie and eventually just switches his point of view. This leads to some fairly disjointed character development. Bryon’s progression can be seen, but it doesn’t feel like it flows organically. He just spends a lot of time with Julie and her kids, enjoys it, and stops hanging around the people he once hung around.
Bryon, along with everyone else he once was around, committed plenty of horrible acts, and while he’s seen later on in the movie uncomfortable being around his former family, it never feels like the issue is directly addressed on his path to him getting to that point. There’s little depth to the story as a result, because it doesn’t feel like so much of as journey as it does Bryon just stopping what he normally did. There are a lot of scenes of Bryon, or other characters, saying how they can’t do something or don’t want to do something, and the issue of “why they don’t” doesn’t really feel explored.
It’s rare there’s a scene when something truly jumps out at the audience and indicates just how high the stakes are in a situation, especially in the first act. Most of the dramatic tension in the first act is very dialogue based, but the conversations are fairly straightforward and often feel mundane. Nothing truly resonates with the audience. There are a few more active scenes in the second half, which is arguably where the movie picks up a little steam, but the way the film gets there doesn’t feel totally earned since that transformative moment in Bryon’s journey never truly feels established.
It’s a shame though, because the movie is really well acted, and the cast does give it their all. Jamie Bell’s performance is way better than the material called for. The pained expressions on his face, especially as the movie progresses, are apparent, though he’s stuck with only being able to take this so far, since Bryon’s only given so much depth. Danielle Macdonald gives a truly passionate performance as Julie, and in some cases possibly outshines Bell during certain key moments. There are clear signs that she candle some truly meaty subject matter, and like with Bell, she seems confined to only being able to do so much.
Bill Camp and Vera Farmiga are both suitably sleazy as the two leaders of the white supremacist gang that Bryon hangs around. They have a menacing presence about them here, even when they attempt to talk gently to Bryon, but the true forces of evil they can really be are only explored in maybe a handful of scenes and they feel somewhat like emotionally stunted antagonists. They clearly care about Bryon, but wanted him to come back to his old horrible ways, and the film could have leaned into that conflict a bit harder than they did to show just how toxic they can be, as they feel like they’re otherwise given only so much to do.
Also criminally underused is Mike Colter as a political activist who Bryon befriends and helps him out in the film’s second half. He’s seen briefly in the beginning and then not again until much later on in the film. There’s emphasis placed on how close he and Bryon become, but it doesn’t feel totally believable, mostly due to the fact that the way he’s reintroduced into the narrative feels a bit shoehorned, with little of a foundation to build off beforehand and the movie feels like it suddenly shifts gears. Colter is a great actor in general and there was plenty of potential with his inclusion here that unfortunately feels like it goes to waste.
Skin has interesting subject matter but it fails to truly take advantage of its real-life premise. It focuses on a topic that still has horrible effects in the world today, and could have been a great opportunity to explore just how awful the consequences of one’s actions could be. Instead, the film fails to dig any deeper than the surface level with much of its material, with its main character simply switching points of view rather than going on a journey that feels like an emotionally satisfying arc. Still, it’s really well acted and its talented cast does make the most out of what they’re given, even if it feels like very little, and their solid performances do elevate the material to make this watchable, even if it’s only once.
Recommendation: Proceed With Caution
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