One of the grotesque portrayals of class struggle and elitism is portrayed in 2023’s Jacob Elordi and Barry Keoghan starrer ‘Saltburn’. The Emerald Fennell directorial explores the darker themes of isolation, manipulation, greed, and the extent of moral corruption as a result of isolation.
‘Saltburn’ is now streaming on Prime Video with some stellar performances by Barry Keoghan, Rosamund Pike, Jacob Elordi, and other supporting cast members. The film revolves around Oliver Quick, who gets admitted to Oxford University. Apart from academics, his goal is to penetrate the elite group and befriend Felix Catton. As they strike a friendship, Oliver infiltrates the elite, leading to some bizarre events at Felix’s Saltburn property. There are many graphic scenes, but the cemetery scene has to be the most disturbing visual in the film.
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The Greek Mythology Symbolism In ‘Saltburn’
Jacob Elordi and Barry Keoghan’s ‘Saltburn’ had a very intriguing take on elite parasitism in the most raw, fierce manner. Emerald Fennell went all guns blazing in portraying intimacy on the screen, which resulted in some gore-laden scenes that had jaws dropped and eyebrows raised. But the cemetery scene of Felix getting buried in ‘Saltburn’ played on certain symbolism in the idea of rebirth and death.
After the sudden death of Felix at Oliver’s birthday party, the family mourns his death along with that of his friend, Oliver. After the stone-throwing ceremony, Oliver is left in anguish. He profusely cries on the buried corpse of his dear friend. Before Felix’s death, Felix donned angel wings, which hinted at his possible death in the film. However, the death also symbolized the rebirth of the new kin of the Saltburn property, Oliver Quick.
But the defining moment in the scene, where Oliver is alone with Felix drenched in rain, is when he decides to drop every piece of clothing, have his penis out, and hump the soil where Felix is buried. It is a clear portrayal of necrophilia, which had its mention in Greek mythology.
Necrophilia was mentioned in Greek mythology when Achilles fell in love with Amazon after her death on her corpse. But the death of Felix ended the love that never existed for Oliver towards him. The scene was a mere act of unveiling the psychotic layers. It shows the rekindled spirit of his purpose after the death of Felix.
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Barry Keoghan Talked About The Cemetery Scene
Image Courtesy: Vanity Fair
While the audience had reservations about several scenes in ‘Saltburn’, the cemetery scene was one of the extreme extensions of the obsession that Oliver had for Felix. Barry Keoghan has weighed upon the scene and how it was seeded by Emerald Fennell on the day of the shoot, telling him, “I don’t know, Barry. I think that he would…unzip.” Barry went ahead with it.
Barry Keoghan, during an interview with Entertainment Weekly, talked about what the scene signified. He said, “For me, it wasn’t about fecking the grave, it was more about I don’t know what to do with this obsession; it’s making me confused and making me unhuman in a way. It was a total discovery for him, I think. And it was sad. It was very, very sad.”
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