Charlie Polinger’s The Plague is a potent, unnerving look at the psychology of growing up, where social pressure and emerging cruelty shape the way young minds reckon with right and wrong.
The film centers on Ben (Everett Blunck), a shy twelve-year-old thrust into the unforgiving social environment of an all-boys water polo camp. Here, adolescent hierarchies are heightened to ritualistic extremes: the campers single out one boy to bear “The Plague,” a practice that begins as a crude joke but evolves into an emotionally devastating exercise in humiliation. Through Ben’s eyes, the film portrays the acute anxiety and moral uncertainty of youth, revealing how peer pressure can warp instinct and conscience alike.
The narrative is informed by Polinger’s own adolescent experiences, drawn from journals he kept at the age of twelve. This personal lens imbues the story with an authenticity that keeps it grounded even when it becomes intensely uncomfortable. The presence of Joel Edgerton as the camp’s sole adult figure adds a crucial layer: his interventions, at times earnest, at times misguided, underscore how adult responses can either contain or amplify the cruelty of adolescence.
Blunck delivers a masterful, assured performance as Ben, balancing the inner conflict of succumbing to peer pressure with his growing empathy for Eli (Kenny Rasmussen), the perennial outsider. Kayo Martin is just as compelling as the camp’s provocateur, whose bullying stems not from malice alone, but from an anxious desire to control perception and maintain social standing. Rasmussen’s Eli embodies resilience and dignity, emphasizing the isolation and self-reliance forced upon those labeled “other.” Together, these performances construct a tense, morally intricate microcosm of adolescence, where each act resonates way beyond its moment.
Steven Breckon’s cinematography brings the camp to life with a naturalistic, immersive style, pulling the audience into its claustrophobic, emotionally charged atmosphere. Every shot heightens the stakes of humiliation and loyalty, making the characters’ choices feel immediate and urgent. Polinger’s direction embraces discomfort, turning familiar adolescent rituals into a compelling study of power, cruelty, and tentative empathy.
Ultimately, The Plague brings the chaos of adolescence to life in stark, uncompromising terms. Through Ben, you see just how easily peer pressure can pull someone along—and how quickly being accepted can turn to being singled out. One minute he’s in the gang; the next, he’s the target. Polinger keeps a steady, unflinching eye on it all, creating a film that is both profoundly uncomfortable and searingly unforgettable.
VERDICT:
Independent Film Company will release The Plague theatrically in NY and LA on December 24, expanding wide on January 2.
