Morfydd Clark – Saint Maud #LFF2019

PODCAST | Matt Micucci interviews Morfydd Clark, actress of the film Saint Maud.

A short interview with Morfydd Clark, one of the co-leads of the film Saint Maud, the horror debut of director Rose Glass, presented in the Official Competition of the 2019 BFI London Film Festival. Clark talks with us about her character, how she connected with her anxiety and the very real universal themes of the film, and tells us a little but about her experience working with Glass on this movie.

Saint Maud: Having recently found God, self-effacing young nurse Maud (Morfydd Clark) is untiring in her spiritual devotion. Landing a job as full-time private carer, she arrives at the plush home of Amanda (Jennifer Ehle), a hedonistic dancer left frail from a chronic illness. While they could not be more different – Amanda’s taste for the extravagant being the antithesis of Maud’s pious values – the mismatched pair are intrigued by each other, slowly building a brittle bond of co-dependency. But when a chance encounter with a former colleague throws up hints of a dark past, it becomes clear there is more to sweet Maud than meets the eye. As Amanda’s self-indulgent behaviour escalates, tensions between the couple steadily grow, leaving Maud convinced that she has been sent to serve a higher purpose. Rose Glass’ gothic-tinged psychological drama is a wickedly playful piece of work, by turns insidiously creepy, darkly humorous and heartbreakingly sad. The two leads crackle with palpable chemistry, with Jennifer Ehle’s beautifully nuanced performance proving the perfect complement to Morfydd Clark’s star-making turn as the unsaintly Maud. Consistently upending expectations, this thrilling one-of-a-kind is an almost religious experience.