What is Under the Skin about?
A seductive stranger prowls the streets of Glasgow in search of prey: unsuspecting men who fall under her spell.
Does it have a happy ending? (spoiler-safe)
It leaves the ending open to interpretation.
An alien predator seduces lonely men in a bleak, surreal hunt across a chilling landscape.
A late-night trip that takes its time. Emotionally it is heavy.
Streaming on Netflix, Kanopy (free), Hoopla (free), Fandango at Home (free) and Plex (free).
Under the Skin parents guide
No surprises for an R: moderate sex and nudity, and some violence.
- Scare
- Mildly scary
- A few tense or eerie moments.
- Jump scares
- None noted
- Gore
- Graphic gore
- Blood and wounds shown clearly.
- Violence
- Some violence
- Some fighting or peril.
- Sex and nudity
- Moderate
- Moderate means a sex scene or nudity on screen, even brief, or sexual violence that is described or implied but never shown.
- Language
- Mild
- Mild words like damn, hell or crap.
How we rate: an AI reads what is known about each title and tags it 0 to 3; we check the tags against a hand-rated set and correct them by hand when readers tell us. Estimates, not a scene-by-scene review. Spot a mistake? Tell us.
Three questions
- Is Under the Skin scary?
- Only a little. Under the Skin has a few tense moments, nothing that follows you to bed.
- How gory is Under the Skin?
- Graphic gore and some violence. If graphic gore is a dealbreaker, skip it.
- What is Under the Skin rated, and is it OK for kids?
- Rated R, and it earns it: moderate sex and nudity, and graphic gore. Not one for kids.
Cast and crew
Directed byJonathan Glazer
StarringScarlett Johansson, Jeremy McWilliams, Lynsey Taylor Mackay, Dougie McConnell, Kevin McAlinden, D. Meade
More like Under the Skin
Blade Runner (1982)Melancholy · light gore · strong violence · emotionally heavyA gritty, atmospheric Los Angeles detective hunts artificial humans while confronting his own melancholy existence.
Mulholland Drive (2001)Surreal · light gore · emotionally heavy · a slow burnA dreamlike mystery unfolds as a blonde ingénue and an amnesiac brunette navigate Hollywood's chilling, surreal depths.
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)Bleak · late-night trip · strong violence · emotionally heavyA bleak, slow-burn mystery unfolds as a blade runner unearths a secret that could shatter society.
Shutter Island (2010)Suspenseful · light gore · strong violence · emotionally devastatingA marshal's investigation into a missing patient unravels amidst chilling visions and a pervasive sense of dread.
Fight Club (1999)Gritty · graphic gore · brutal violence · emotionally devastatingAn insomniac and a soap salesman unleash primal aggression, igniting a darkly comic, surreal spiral toward oblivion.
The Silence of the Lambs (1991)Properly scary · graphic gore · strong violence · emotionally devastatingA brilliant, imprisoned psychopath offers chilling insights into a serial killer's mind, if a young agent dares to listen.
Metropolis (1927)Epic · late-night trip · strong violence · emotionally heavyA bleak, surreal, and epic drama unfolds in a futuristic city sharply divided by class.
The Shining (1980)Terrifying · graphic gore · brutal violence · emotionally devastatingA family's isolated winter retreat becomes a slow-burn descent into chilling, surreal madness.
Under the Skin is on our Sci-fi on Kanopy, Thriller on Hoopla and Sci-fi on Hoopla lists.
More like this feeling
Prompts we typed into CouchRot, and the lists that share its tags.
Lists with the same feel: Weird and surreal and Slow burns.
Five more like Under the Skin
Say the mood. Five picks with where they stream, right here.
Uses the TMDB API; not endorsed or certified by TMDB. Intensity, content, tone and pace tags are CouchRot's own.