Review: 'Saint Maud' is a lurid, atmospheric horror film that showcases actress Morfydd Clark and director Rose Glass

A nurse with a messiah complex is at the bloody heart of “Saint Maud,” an atmospheric horror drama that spotlights two intriguing young talents: Actress Morfydd Clark and director Rose Glass.

Clark is somewhat familiar, or should be, having given solid performances in two Charles Dickens-adjacent period films: “The Man Who Invented Christmas,” in which he played Dickens’ young wife, and “The Personal History of David Copperfield,” where she stole the show as the title character’s ditzy fiancee.

Here, Clark plays Maud — or, at least, that’s the name she’s using now — who takes a job as a home nurse to Amanda (Jennifer Ehle), a famous dancer and choreographer who’s now using a wheelchair because of a cancer on her spinal column. We come to learn that Maud had an incident at the hospital where she previously worked, but her nursing skills and bedside manner seem to be OK for Amanda.

Glass, in her feature debut as director and screenwriter, shows us that Maud is a recent convert to Jesus — and is concerned, almost to the point of obsession, with Amanda’s imminent death and her destination in the afterlife. Amanda jokingly calls Maud her savior, but Maud seems to be seriously auditioning for the role.

Glass puts an intriguing spin on the straight-forward narrative, by showing us this relationship through two prisms: Reality, and the hyper-real fantasy land that Maud sees as she carries out her plan to “save” Amanda’s soul. The view isn’t always pretty, but it’s often fascinating.

Glass’ pace is brisk, but leaving enough time for Clark to put her stamp on this tricky role. Clark plays Maud as a madwoman, certainly, but with an earnestness that makes her delusions almost defensible. Together, Glass and Clark create an intense portrait of madness, of fanatical belief taken to bloody extremes.

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‘Saint Maud’

★★★

Opens Friday, January 29, in theaters where open; debuts February 12 on Epix. Rated R for disturbing and violent content, sexual content and language. Running time: 84 minutes.