If you can’t beat them, be them. The cost is everything.
Amy Wang’s debut feature, Slanted, opens with a child pulling at the corners of her eyes. It is a moment of cruelty so specific and so tired that it immediately establishes the film’s thesis: the world is not built for everyone.
This body horror satire, which premiered at SXSW in 2025, follows Joan Huang, a Chinese-American teenager desperate to win prom queen. Shirley Chen plays Joan with a frantic energy that masks a deep well of insecurity. She bleaches her hair, pinches her nose, and applies filters that erase her features. When a shadowy corporation called Ethnos offers her an “ethnic modification surgery,” she signs up without hesitation. She wakes up as Jo Hunt, played by Mckenna Grace, complete with blonde hair and white skin.
Where similar films might lean into the gross-out potential of the premise, Wang keeps the focus on the psychological fallout. The result is a messy, ambitious, and surprisingly tender look at internalized racism. It asks a question many would rather ignore: what happens when someone gets exactly what they wished for? Slanted doesn’t offer easy answers, but it refuses to look away from the damage.
Slanted is a 2025 American body horror-comedy film written and directed by Amy Wang. The film stars Shirley Chen as a Chinese-American teenager who undergoes an experimental ethnic modification surgery to try and fit in at school. Mckenna Grace, Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, and Amelie Zilber provide supporting roles. Wang, Mark Ankner, Trevor Wall, and Adel “Future” Nur produced the film through the companies Mountain Top Pictures and Tideline Entertainment.
The film premiered at the 2025 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival on March 8 as part of the Narrative Feature Competition. It was released in the United States on March 13, 2026.
Slanted Review: The High School Satire That Replaces Laughs With Wounds
A Horror Movie review by George Wolf
Writer/director Amy Wang’s debut feature Slanted has so many plates spinning in the air, I expected most of them to eventually come crashing down. For just over ninety minutes, Wang juggles social satire, body horror, high school comedy and cultural drama with a fearless commitment to boundary pushing.
Actually, maybe more like boundary shoving.
Chinese-American teen Joan Huang (Shirley Chen) has a singular mission: to beat out her high school’s Queen Bee Olivia Hammond (Amelie Zilber) and be elected Prom Queen.
Just imagine her gigantic framed picture in the hallway next to all those other white, blonde Queens of the past!
Joan’s mother, Sofia (Vivian Wu) and best friend, Brindha (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) aren’t thrilled when Joan bleaches her black hair, but that’s just the beginning. Lured into the office of the smiling Dr. Singer (R. Kieth Harris), Joan is hooked by his pitch of a perfect new life. She tricks her mother into signing a consent form and undergoes Dr. Singer’s experimental surgery.
And when Joan Huang wakes up from the operation, she’s Jo Hunt (McKenna Grace). No scars, no bandages, just all pretty, blonde and perfectly white.
Dr. Singer’s first recommendation: “Go see Michael Buble!”
Anyone who remembers Eddie Murphy’s classic “White Like Me” SNL bit from 1984 will recognize the world that suddenly opens up to Jo – and Wang skewers that world with biting humor and wry precision. But as much as Wang pushes her character envelopes, she gets balance from a more subtle hand that calls out the systems that breed and perpetuate this Lilly white playground. (Keep an eye on the local business names, as well as the photographs chosen for mantles, bedroom walls and school lockers.)
Could there be a price to pay for Jo abandoning her family, friend and heritage? Oh yes. And while I won’t be the first or last to mention the resulting mashup of Mean Girls and The Substance, give Wang credit for not giving a flying F.
There’s plenty of last year’s Grafted here, too, though Wang never dives that deeply into a horror show. What she does do is pull all of these influences through her own lens with unapologetic abandon, and a fittingly flawed final girl.
This is a wonderfully ambitious, high concept debut for Amy Wang. At turns both familiar and ferocious, it never lets you get too comfortable with its message. Funny, horrific, bittersweet, angry and insightful, Slanted feels like an experiment gone right.
Horror Movie Reviews from the Fright Club Podcast and Ginger Nuts of Horror
For horror fans seeking the ultimate guide to the genre, look no further than the horror movie reviews on Ginger Nuts of Horror. Our platform is the premier destination for in-depth horror film analysis, curated by our dedicated team of critics from the Fright Club Podcast.
Our horror movie review team is powered by the seasoned expertise of the Fright Club Podcast, featuring Hope Madden and George Wolf from Maddwolf.com. This collective brings a relentless passion for the macabre to every critique. The Fright Club Podcast experts dissect the very fabric of fear in film, going beyond simple plot summary to analyse the unsettling cinematography, masterful sound design, thematic depth, and cultural impact that define both modern classics and hidden indie gems.
Discover Your Next Favourite Fright
Whether you’re a casual horror viewer or a dedicated aficionado, our reviews serve as your essential compass. We cover the full spectrum of the genre—from mainstream horror blockbusters to groundbreaking independent horror films. The Fright Club Podcast team’s insights reveal layers of meaning and directorial intention, enriching your viewing experience and helping you discover underrated horror movies you might otherwise miss.
Stay Ahead of the Horror Curve
The Ginger Nuts of Horror review website is your frontline for upcoming horror releases and emerging genre trends. Our critiques, fueled by discussions on the Fright Club Podcast, offer more than just a rating; they provide a comprehensive discussion that prepares you for what’s lurking in the theatrical and streaming shadows.
Deepen Your Horror Journey with the Fright Club Podcast
Exploring our horror film reviews is a vital step toward a deeper, more nuanced appreciation of horror. Let Hope Madden, George Wolf, and the Fright Club Podcast team guide you through the nightmares. Bookmark our section for the best horror movie reviews and join a community dedicated to the art of fear.
Ready to get scared? Browse the definitive collection of horror movie critiques on Ginger Nuts of Horror, and don’t forget to listen to the Fright Club Podcast for even more terrifying insights.
