Fingernails: LFF Film Review
Jessie Buckley and Riz Ahmed in a movie together? Yes, please! That was all I needed to know before I checked out Fingernails.
This sci-fi romance is set in a world where a test exists to determine true love. Couples undergo the test – which requires the removal of a fingernail – to confirm that they’re the perfect match. Conversely, if the machine states that they’re not in love then they can cut their losses and break up. The film follows Anna (Buckley), who joins the love-testing institute and learns how to run a training program for pre-test couples with Amir (Ahmed).
I loved the dark Black Mirror-style concept, the world-building and learning more about the belief system, the training program (which is designed to make love blossom) and the ramifications of the new technology. We know that love is not an exact science so it’s maddening that everyone takes the results as gospel here. There is also a sense of uneasiness around people who don’t take the test; others assume they’ve got something to hide and don’t love their partner.
The first half is certainly stronger than the second. This is possibly because the novelty wears off and this new world stops being so interesting. The stakes become higher though, with plenty of wince-inducing fingernail removal action. It’s a very extreme way to test love, no? Surely a bit of hair or a blood sample would’ve worked. But I guess it shows that people in this world are so desperate for love that they’ll endure such a painful procedure.
Despite the solid performances from Buckley, Ahmed and Jeremy Allen White as Anna’s boyfriend Ryan, the idea runs out of steam towards the end. This was compounded by the fact that I didn’t agree with some of the character’s choices. Perhaps director Christos Nikou didn’t know how to wrap things up because the ending was very underwhelming and unsatisfying.
Fingernails has an intriguing concept and top performances but the story runs out of gas near the end.
In selected cinemas and Apple TV+ from Friday 3rd November