Clayface: A $44 Million Batman Spinoff with Low Stakes
The film features Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen, a star who loses his face and his career, before gaining shape-shifting powers through experimental cell rejuvenation.
By Jason Lee ·
Batman villain spinoffs have produced inconsistent results. The Joker earned an Oscar, but its sequel failed. Suicide Squad turned Harley Quinn into a mainstream figure, while Catwoman squandered a major casting opportunity. Now Clayface arrives, adapting a character known to comic book fans but rarely seen on screen.
The movie keeps its scope modest. Production costs are estimated at $44 million. The creative team appears to match that budget with restrained ambitions. The film stars Tom Rhys Harries as Matt Hagen, an actor who has risen from a rough Gotham City upbringing to earn an Oscar nomination.
Hagen's life unravels after he falls for Mia, played by Joana Ribeiro. She is the girlfriend of gangster Markos Szabo, played by David Dencik. Despite warnings from his best friend Corey, played by Joshua James, Hagen pursues the relationship. Szabo discovers the betrayal and mangles Hagen's face in an attack.
The disfigurement ends Hagen's acting career. Szabo's power shields him from legal consequences, and plastic surgery fails to restore Hagen's appearance. He becomes a test subject for Dr. Caitlyn Corr, played by Naomi Ackie. Corr develops radical cell rejuvenation technology intended for medical purposes, but she agrees to treat Hagen after weeks of high-risk procedures.
The treatments restore his face but alter his biology. The new cells create unwanted growths, including coverings over his eyes, which require impromptu surgery in an airport bathroom. Hagen also gains the ability to change his appearance to resemble others. He uses these powers for revenge against those who wronged him.
Dr. Corr and her fiancé, Detective John Borrelli, played by Max Minghella, serve as the film's heroes. They must confront the monster Corr created. The movie relies on body horror, showing cells that do not always form a healthy human shape. Some transformations occur instantly without explanation, a choice that suggests a budget constraint rather than a stylistic decision.
The story follows a predictable arc. Hagen moves from understandable revenge to outright villainy quickly. The film is rated R for strong bloody violence, gore, language, some nudity, and brief drug use. The running time is 108 minutes. Robert Garver, a Cinema Studies graduate from New York University, grades the film a C.
Source: The Forum of Fargo–Moorhead
