Under the Skin is one of my 4 favorite films of all time, easily my favorite role for Scarlett Johansson, and, I believe, the crowning performance of her career so far.

Jonathan Glazer's film uses the heavily interpretive narrative of a predatory alien lifeform disguised as a human female to illustrate the constant, horrifying danger of simply existing as a woman. For the first half of the film, this is emphasized by subversion – Johansson's Female preys on young men in small-town Scotland, luring them into a creepy windowless van by calling to them on the street and awkwardly flirting with them as she asks for directions and offers them rides (it's worth noting that, like a lot of scenes in this movie, many of the sequences in which passersby decline her offer were shot via hidden camera, capturing real men's candid responses to the situation). The setup is always presented as being as sketchy as possible; the Female's questions are always clearly rehearsed, her answers suspiciously vague, and her British accent obviously phony. They are circumstances that should trip a million red flags, and absolutely would if the genders were reversed, but these men think nothing of trusting this total stranger completely because she is so very attractive.

Later in the movie, the message is imparted more directly. After an encounter with a man with a facial deformity (Adam Pearson lending his genuinely unique appearance to the production) that leaves her bewildered enough to let the victim go, the confused and existentially uneasy Female wanders the countryside and experiences human male behavior firsthand, from kindness and genuine attraction to aggressive sexual violence.

The brilliance of this film lies in its layering of meta-elements to crystallize its message. The Female hunts her prey by weaponizing cultural norms governing how men and women interact, but she is utterly oblivious to these dynamics. She acts instead wholly on instinct. Johansson’s beauty amplifies the effectiveness with which its concept is presented. This film is the only time in her career that she has appeared naked; her nudity is graphic and extended. The likelihood that some men will watch Under the Skin seeking arousal plays directly into its message.

Johansson's acting in this movie is breathtaking, masterful. The subtlety of her physical skill is thoroughly on display; in the performance, her unique talent for portraying an inhuman being acting human with uncanny precision emerges for the first time. Her sheer, genuine confusion as she starts to question her survival protocols makes something as subtle and mundane as eating a slice of cake seem a totally bewildering, alien task. There are moments in Under the Skin that cause me to begin instantly, steadily weeping, and every one of them is a wordless scene employing only body language or physical action.

This film is essential viewing for any fan of Scarlett Johansson, a masterclass in conveying emotion through physical movement, and an important work toward understanding the female experience.