CERT: 18 | DIRECTOR: PATRYK VEGA | SCREENPLAY: PATRYK VEGA | STARRING: OLGA BOLADZ, KASIA WARNKE, MARIETA ZUKOWSKA, AGNIESZKA DYGANT | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Inspired by true events, four women whose paths cross over a period of time, come face to face with the dark side of the Polish medical system in Patryck Vega’s controversial film, Botoxx.

Vega, a director who is known for pushing the boundaries in his films, is back with a story that starts off strong and ambitious but ultimately suffers from a humbled multi-stringed narrative with jarring editing and a variety of dialogue and actions which unfortunately feel like shock value for the sake of shock value.

The story follows; Daniela, a young paramedic who after giving birth to twins is left by her partner, Beata, a doctor who after an accident is left alone and let down by the medical system, Patrycja, a surgeon who discovers a life-changing procedure to increase female orgasms and Magda, an abortion nurse who is forced to go against her better judgement by a tyrannical head of department.

Now, even from that description alone, that feels like a hefty amount of story threads to juggle – and it is. The film already clocks in at a whopping 132 minutes but at points feels even longer.

However, when the tone isn’t shifting at nano speed, Vega does present some interesting ideas and visceral practical effects including childbirth and certainly doesn’t sugarcoat it. The film also suffers from cartoon-esque villains whose motivation is generic and feels forced. The ending of the film presents some logical and satisfying conclusions to the story of each character but the journey felt laboured and convoluted.

Botoxx possesses a plethora of interesting storylines and stunning cinematography throughout but is lumbered with clunky exposition and unwarranted shock value for the sake of it.