Paulo Perez makes his feature-length debut as a writer and director in The Human Supremacist. The darkly comedic thriller is about hardcore vegan Natalie (Rachel Mackall), who is in the process of breaking up with her boyfriend because he cheated. But not in the “sex with someone else way.” No, he recently consumed chicken. While sad, being single gives Natalie the chance to focus on her upcoming Human In Virtue retreat, which other super vegans run.
Upon arrival, Natalie is greeted by Dahlia (Annie Gill), the leader of this group of extreme vegans. The others here for the H.I.V. retreat are Ember (Zoe Donmoyer) and Phoenix (Laura Lassen), who excitedly hug the newcomer upon meeting her. Just as Natalie is settling in and about to eat a delicious lunch of avocado toast, Dahlia knocks it out of her hand. It turns out the Solar Sanctuary is home to a religious cult who hate their humanity and believe that even eating plants, who can scream but imperceptibly, is wrong. Dahlia, Ember, and Phoenix are all attempting to achieve photosynthesis so they don’t have to consume anything but water. Soon, the lengths these three women will go to abolish all animal and plant cruelty dawns upon Natalie the more time she spends there. Can she escape this extreme cult, or does their way of thinking make sense to her?
The Human Supremacist is as absurd as the likes of The Adventures Of Buckaroo Banzai but more focused. Perez has a clear point he’s trying to make and does so in a highly amusing fashion. Natalie’s reaction to Dahlia describing the plants’ screams is hilarious and is exactly what the audience is thinking. Each escalating incident at H.I.V. is more dangerous, both physically and mentally than the last, and the laughs increase tenfold each time. The funniest part is when Natalie is renamed to Aurora. Gill’s reaction is gut-busting.
“Dahlia, Ember, and Phoenix are all attempting to achieve photosynthesis…”
Perez doesn’t just play in the realm of humor, though, as the film is also a thriller. Considering this is the filmmaker’s first full-length outing, he pulls off a miracle. For as funny as this is, and it is quite humorous, it is equally as tense and thrilling. Audience members will feel very anxious when Natalie is starving herself for photosynthesis. Once one of the H.I.V. members winds up dead, the nervousness and sense of danger amp up swiftly.
The expertly landed punchlines and intensity of the situation would not work, no matter the solid direction, if not for Mackall’s performance. She’s absurd, a little annoying, highly likable, and just naive enough so that all watching buy that the character can ignore the obvious red flags. The actor delivers on all this and proves to possess good action chops at the end. Gill is over-the-top, making her all the more silly and scary. Lassen and Donmoyer are also excellent, but for fear of spoilers, that’s enough said.
The Human Supremacist is just plain fun. The comedy hits in all the right zany ways, and the thrills are genuinely intense. The cast is perfect, and the director proves to be a talent to watch. If all of Perez’s films are this good, he’ll be a master in a short time.
"…just plain fun."
