THE PLAGUE Discovery

AFI Conservatory Alum Charlie Polinger (AFI Class of 2017) makes his striking feature debut with this toxic story of pre-teen posturing. It’s the summer of 2003 and twelve-year-old Ben (Everett Blunck) shows up at an all-boys’ water polo camp carrying the weight of his parents’ divorce and the angst of being the new kid in town. Desperate to fit in, he flocks to the effortlessly cool and preternaturally perceptive Jake (social media star Kayo Martin). As Ben starts to find favor among the boys on the team, he’s warned about getting too close to the socially awkward but strangely confident Eli (Kenny Rasmussen). He suffers from a blotchy, itchy, red skin rash. Is it just a case of eczema or a contagious plague to be avoided at all costs? Stuck between wanting to impress the group and a burgeoning friendship with Eli, Ben is forced to decide where his allegiances lie. But when the rash starts to spread, Ben loses his grip on reality as fear takes hold. Deeply funny and equally as disturbing (puberty in a nutshell), Polinger melds body horror with a razor-sharp insight into the subconscious psyche of adolescence, filling the screen with haunting visuals, a menacing choral score and impeccable sound design. Joel Edgerton produces and co-stars as Ben’s well-meaning but emotionally inept coach in this Cannes Film Festival debuted stunner. –Josh Gardner