There are a lot of times on TV and film that a lesbian or bi-identified character decides to sleep with a man. The situations and consequences are usually predictable: The woman usually has a partner who finds out about the indiscretion, and then they must decide whether they can work it out or if it’s the end of their relationship. Sometimes they stay together (The Kids Are Alright), even when the offender gets pregnant (Our Idiot Brother), but I don’t think we’ve ever seen anything like Contracted. Premiering on IFC Midnight Video-on-Demand and in select theaters next Friday, the horror movie finds its lesbian protagonist, Samantha (Najarra Townsend), sleeping with a guy she meets at a party and then contracting a killer STD.
Contracted was written and directed by Eric England and has appeared at a few film fests. One review details that Samantha is a “party girl with little discipline and even less direction” that is on a break from her girlfriend (Alice Macdonald) and ends up living back at home with her mom. She’s so down and out that when she decides to hook up with a strange guy at a party, she instantly regrets it but then finds he’s given her more than a terrible night. Meanwhile, her girlfriend wants to work things out and, well, let’s just say I don’t know that they’ll be able to move past this situation.
As a fan of horror movies, I’ll definitely be seeing this one. I’m also very curious to see if it ends up being biphobic, or if it feels like Samantha is being “punished” in any way for her lesbianism. Sadly, like I said, we’ve seen these kinds of situations before. Let’s just hope they’ve gotten a little more creative.
Contracted will be available on VOD and in select theaters November 22.
