Swallow (2019)

Swallow is a 2019 psychological thriller film written and directed by Carlo Mirabella-Davis, in his directorial debut, and starring Haley Bennett, Austin Stowell, Elizabeth Marvel, David Rasche, and Denis O'Hare.

Its plot follows a young woman who, emotionally stifled in her marriage and domestic life, develops an impulse to consume inedible objects.

Plot
Hunter, a young woman from a lower working-class family in upstate New York has recently married Richie, a man from a wealthy family who is set to take over as CEO of his father's Manhattan corporation. This affords Hunter, once an aspiring illustrator, the ability to stay at home in the couple's lavish upstate home on the Hudson River.

Despite this, Hunter finds herself increasingly emotionally stifled and isolated in both her marriage and domestic life, and finds Richie distant and inconsiderate toward her. One day while home alone, Hunter develops the impulse to eat a marble, and musters the courage to do so. She finds it exhilarating, and begins to consume other inedible objects around the house, including thumbtacks, metal figurines, and batteries. Each item she swallows, once digested, she meticulously cleans and arranges on her vanity.

Release
Swallow had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 28, 2019

Filming
Principal photography began in May 2018.

The movie was filmed in a glass home in Highland, New York, along the Hudson River, and a nearby farm. Mirabella-Davis attributes the selection of the home to its Hitchcock-like appearance. He also has compared the home's bordering river to a "mood ring", representing freedom, power, and danger: a stark contrast to the powerless life protagonist Hunter finds herself living.

Reception
Swallow received positive reviews from film critics. It holds a 90% approval rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes