Interview: ‘The Plague’ Writer/Director Charlie Polinger Talks Returning to Adolescence

Every now and then a movie will really sneak up on you. Seemingly appear out of nowhere to make you confront emotions or anxieties that are so deeply internalized you’d forgotten you even had them. This is the experience that I and many others have been having with The Plague, an atmospheric psychological thriller set in a water polo summer camp for middle-schoolers. The film follows Ben (played by Critics Choice Award nominee Everett Blunck), a new kid whose desperation to make friends and fit in takes on a sinister edge when he is confronted with the titular “plague,” a so-called disease that has been spreading amongst the campers and results in permanent social exile.

Though we never formally reviewed the film, I’ve talked at length on the Awards Radar Podcast about how it has worked its way into my brain and taken up residence there. So rare is it to see a film this confident, this confronting, and this revealing about the existential hell of being an adolescent. The beautiful 35mm cinematography by Steven Breckon utilizes the swimming pool at the center of the film in a number of haunting tableaus, and the score by composer Johan Lenox will make you feel like someone is scraping the inside of your skull. Perhaps most impressive is the sheer nuance and complexity on display from the ensemble of talented young actors. The performances of Blunck, Kayo Martin, and Kenny Rasmussen are all as deeply felt and vulnerable as that of any adult peer you care to name.

The vision behind all of this comes from writer and director Charlie Polinger, who makes his feature directorial debut with The Plague, expanding on ideas presented in his 2018 short film Sauna. Following the momentum of his recent nomination for the DGA Award for First-Time Theatrical Feature Film, Charlie has a full dance card lined up, as he is currently in Budapest preparing to helm a new adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe’s The Masque of the Red Death for A24. Not to be pinned down by any one genre, he is also currently co-writing a live-action Bratz movie with his Plague co-producer Lucy McKendrick.

Charlie took a quick break from his busy schedule to sit down and talk to me a little about all things The Plague. We discussed what it was like to return to such a vulnerable adolescent headspace while conceiving of the film, as well as the steps taken to ensure that the cast of primarily younger actors were able to perform safely and comfortably. We also talk about the influence of the film’s producer/co-star Joel Edgerton, as well as what lessons Charlie will be taking from this production going forward. You can view our full conversation below:

The Plague is currently available to rent or buy on VOD.