I STILL DON'T KNOW HOW TO FEEL ABOUT *SALTBURN* - First Time Watching Reaction

[@lbougie]

On that, Felix was generous enough in any way possible, but some things seemed to confusing whether he takes up the response for getting bored with his own friends he brought. It doesn’t seem right if Felix couldn’t have been open to know why he took the blame for it. He could’ve stay social and honest to his friends. Venetia is really candid about her sudden activities to make her feel like a woman, even Ollie helped her to become a woman in the garden. Her instant gratification blossomed her self-love even more beautiful it’s so toxic. She craved for his toxicity and Ollie does the same, it’s like love becoming a medicine to hatred. He healed her with his voodoo magic. First Farleigh is sour, then Farleigh is sweet. He’s like a sour patch kid. Sourness, it’s because of his resentment and jealousy to his family’s wealth even though he’s stayed aside for being ignored; he mistrusted Ollie for slithering his way to the top of high Catton power without consent, especially Ollie mocked him for being guilty, he was a flawed individual whose behavior is quite triggering. Sweetness, it’s because he deeply loved his families and friends, he seemed to be a natural man who lived his natural way of life; he was there to warn them that Ollie is viciously dehumanizing. He’s straight up gangsta with some good common sense.

[@LeslieField-k1u]

29:18 "I will see you back at Oxford" can also be taken as a subtle menace. He will still be there on campus when they aren't friends anymore, and maybe Felix wouldn't decide to retaliate for the lying or tell influential people on campus, but Oliver doesn't know that. Oliver definitely wants to get his Oxford degree, even if just for the status symbol, and doesn't want someone threatening that. And I believe he finished the degree even if Lord Catton's check was so big that Oliver would never need to work again.

"Oh no are they gonna kill him at the end?" it's the reverse babe 🤣

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Watching it back I was like to myself so close but so far

[@bacchusbegins]

I love watching your reactions. This, to me, was the best movie of the year. The cinematography, art direction, music, director and performances were amazing. And Barry Keoghan was fearless and so inspiring. Such a brave performance. He became desire, the living personification of desire. It’s thrill, fear, anxiety, pain and wrath! And Emerald Fennell’s writing and directing - perfection! I’d love to get the chance to work with all of them. Trust me, you’ll go back and watch this again, and again and again. This was the best movie of the year, but I’d still have to say, my favorite movie of the year was Red, White and Royal Blue. But can’t get enough of either of them!

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Yeah it has to be said that everything about this movie was fantastic even if it was weird and disturbing. And it was so to the fact I have been thinking about it all week which I know if great as it had this lasting effect. Also yes RWRB has to be up there hehe

[@Notachanze]

The fact that Saltburn was my favorite of the year and then RWRB is number 3 behind Nimona….i have a type apparently 😅

[@ethanclarkreacts]

I actually just watched Nemona so I know what you mean.

[@cazb5777]

I love the fact that there are so many opinions about this movie. I absolutely enjoyed the spectacle & just suspended disbelief during some of the plot twists and turns. To me Saltburn is a grown up fairytale & I LOVED every second of it. In fact, I loved it so much that I have watched it 3 times now. Barry Keoghan is currently my favourite actor by far!

[@kellifranklin9872]

I was a big fan of Barry Keoghan before I watched this movie. Now I have no doubt he’s going to be a very famous actor now. I also need to talk about how impressive his dance was at the end. I mean, wow! Lol

[@ethanclarkreacts]

The dance was fantastic and mesmerising I did have to go for a rewatch

[@kellifranklin9872]

@ethanclarkreacts It’s cute that you think I’m actually talking about his dance! Lmao! Happy New Year’s Ethan!

[@rachelBrady-ni]

He's literally the joker He's very famous

[@HuntingViolets]

"He's collected them." Pretty much.

[@DougerSR]

“Im in love but I’m lost”. SPOT ON! I think I said that very same damn thing thing at the same point!!! This has made me subscribe to your channel. Great reaction. Bravo.

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Haha so glad you enjoyed 😊

[@LeslieField-k1u]

26:55 Pamela talked about her Russian ex being involved with violent organized crime and abusive to her (called her "whore" etc). She might have just overdosed or killed herself since she seemed to have that kind of life, but I felt the implication was that the Russian found and killed her once she was no longer protected at Saltburn.

[@LeslieField-k1u]

If so, this is a parallel to the way Oliver "loves" Felix. His private weeping shows he did have an attachment to him, but he is a sick person and the way that he loves is possessive and destructive if the other person wants out.

[@LeslieField-k1u]

41:05 is so sad when you realize she is contrasting him with Felix who didn't get to live his adult life. She had lived in the past all those years and held on to those memories of his last summer never knowing Oliver is why her family was destroyed.

[@tabbymoonshine5986]

"how are we eating LUNCH!?......and I'm a food person!......I don't want to eat PIE!!" 😂 Your reactions are brill

I still don't know how to feel but ONE things i know is that man Jacob Elordi is FINEEE and that's enough for me!

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Oh 1000% I felt like I just kept focusing on him every time he was on screen

[@kristianberg4264]

I’d lick up his mess in a tub too!!!😂😂😂😂😮😊

[@inaciasilva2024]

I feel like Felix was too kindhearted for his own good. I know he was a snob but he was to kind to everyone. He just never thought that Oliver would end his life

[@Musicluvr4]

Rewatching it he wasn’t that kind. He threw away people once he got bored of him, very invasive, and classist. He just had the sheen of kindness because of his wealth.

[@inaciasilva2024]

@@Musicluvr4 what I mean is that he does not expect people to be mean, he kinda seems to always give people the benefit of the doubt. That is type of kindness I was talking about. Even his own mother said at some point that he always sees the good in people and that his sense of judgment cannot be trusted, She did not use this exact words but it was something similar. she said this in that scene when she meets Oliver for the first time and complements him on having beautiful eyes

[@Musicluvr4]

⁠@@inaciasilva2024that I agree with.

[@DannyD-lr5yg]

@@Musicluvr4 I’d say he had the sheen of kindness in spite of his wealth, not because of it. The rest of his family (maybe excluding Venetia, who was more sad than mean) was not kind at all, despite being of the same level of wealth. And then, of course, his wealth no doubt played a huge part in preventing his inborn/trait kindness from developing into full fledged empathy. Tl;dr imo Felix was kind by nature, but this trait was severely hampered by his status. This odd juxtaposition ironically allowed Oliver to gain a foothold and bring the family to ruin.

[@matte5705]

Huh?? He wasn't kind for a second. He only liked people as toys he could live his tragic poverty cosplay through, and the second they didn't play the role he cast them in he'd throw them away just like his mother with Pamela. He was only ever interested in Oliver because he made him feel like he was a good person and because he got off to Oliver's obsession with him. Why do you think he left the door open to the bathroom? Why do you think he made Oliver visit his allegedly terrible home? He saw himself as the savior and wanted to see for himself the horrors he'd saved him from. But not for one second did he see Oliver or anyone else in his life as an actual human. What an absolutely wild misread of his character.

[@HuntingViolets]

Yeah, I saw this in the theatre before Christmas. It reminded me very slightly of _The Talented Mr. Ripley._

[@liruohua1866]

I would say definitely more than slightly for me. There are a lot of parallels

[@ambitionbird]

yes, even the bathtub@@liruohua1866

[@SonjaUnapologetic]

I had no idea what I was getting into when I started watching this movie. It was a lot. Ethan, when you said, “That’s not hygienic” I thought the same thing. I was like, “He’s going to get an infection.” 😂

[@ethanclarkreacts]

The amount of unhygienic-ness in the movie I was worried about was unparalleled 😂

[@SonjaUnapologetic]

@@ethanclarkreacts 😂 Absolutely.

[@dlweiss]

The interesting thing about Felix is: we only ever HEAR about his supposed bad behavior from secondhand sources - his sister and his cousin. We only have their word that Felix treats people like toys and throws them away once he's bored. And both those secondhand sources have BIG reasons to mislead Ollie; they're not trustworthy at all. All we ever actually SEE of Felix's behavior is that he's generally kind, considerate, patient, supportive, and vaguely aware of how wealth and privilege can be problems. Even the times when he's mad at Ollie, he never uses unnecessary insults or deliberate cruelty - he usually just asks Ollie to leave him alone (like any reasonable person would), or calls out a specific behavior from Ollie that's bothering him. As far as I can tell, the worst things we see Felix do is be promiscuous and a bit of a drug/alcohol user. So for me at least, the twist with Felix is that we spend the whole movie waiting to see Felix's "true colors" to see him be abusive and dismissive - but eventually we realize that Felix was exactly what he always appeared to be, and it was only Ollie who was misleading us.

[@alm2587]

rewatching i actually found the opposite to be true. he's generally presented through a very positive light and i'm sure he tries to be kind and have good intentions, but there are plenty of instances of negative traits: he was invasive, laughed along with the girl being classist towards oliver, threw away people on a dime (girls at random, oliver when he annoyed him cleaning his room), told his family all the details of olivers home life, the not-so-micro microaggressions towards farleigh ('we barely even notice you're ..different or anything'), and linking back to being invasive he ignored olivers wishes about seeing his family and completely intruded on his personal business

[@dlweiss]

@@alm2587 Eh, I think he politely laughed along with the girl because he didn't wanna have an argument, but he also tried to passively defend Ollie in that conversation, too. - It's true that he slept with lots of girls, but we see no indication that he ever led them on or acted like he wanted a serious relationship from them - he flirted, had sex, and moved on. Not unusual for a handsome college boy. - He did tell his family about Ollie's home life, but his behavior seems to suggest that he did this because he was trying to make his family treat Ollie in a more sympathetic and welcoming way - and because he was naive enough to think his family wouldn't immediately talk about those things to Ollie when he arrived. - He didn't throw Oliver away "on a dime" after being annoyed about cleaning his room - he literally just told a white lie so her could spend ONE NIGHT hanging out with friends other than Oliver. There's no indication that Felix was done with Oliver for good. And the very next morning Ollie turned up with the fake story about his Dad dying, so we have no clue how soon Felix might've let Ollie hang out again. - You're totally right about the microaggressions against Farleigh. Those were gross, and a clearly sign that Felix's upbringing has given him some prejudices. - It's true, Felix intruded on Ollie's family life and didn't take "no" for an answer - but everything about his behavior suggests that he was genuinely trying to be a caring and supportive friend, and help mend a broken mother-son relationship (since his own family dynamic is broken beyond repair). All that said, I guess it's a great strength of this movie that people can come away from it with so many different interpretations and feelings. One sign of good art! :)

[@adok3109]

@@dlweiss nah even Emerald said nobody is good in this movie, Félix didnt care about girls feelings, he was calssisest, and he got saviour complex after his mother, he might not realize it but he had issues

[@matte5705]

Absolutely insane take I can't even begin to unravel

[@wozing]

@@dlweiss Felix was supposed to meet with a girl the same night he said he'd text Ollie about going to the pub. She ends up almost sleeping with Ollie to get back at Felix, but quits (and for good reason) when Ollie says "I doubt it'd even fucking register." Also, Ollie said something near the beginning about how Felix would sleep with girls and wouldn't even enjoy it. He'd do it just to do it. I think Felix used Ollie (and Ollie recognized this and played along) as a sort of safe way to play out a Prince-and-The-Pauper fantasy, as opposed to the usually debauchery he engaged in.

[@PSPguy2]

I came to watch you fall for Jacob Elordi (me too!) and stayed for the jaw-dropping scenes reaction. Seriously, if you and Elordi were a couple it would be a hotness overload!

[@ethanclarkreacts]

God Jacob was just too attractive in the movie haha. You are too kind 😊

[@LadyScaper]

The most amazing part of your reaction is when you said “Why aren’t they dealing with their emotions? 🤣🤣🤣 They don’t. They are British people.🤣🤣🤣 I was thankful that he ONLY killed Elspeth. Every time I see that scene, I always think he is going to do “worse”, and keep yelling “don’t “ at the screen, in between the shuddering. The horrible part is depending on the type of coma Elspeth is in, she could probably hear and feel what was going on. So she probably had the same fear we did. Truly terrifying.

[@ZakhadWOW]

MY god.. your outraged "From the middle????!!!" HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[@YvetteConte]

Your reactions were hilarious and exactly mine too. I said WTF so many times during this film. Loved rewatching it with you, knowing what was coming before you did.

[@ethanclarkreacts]

So glad you enjoyed 😊

[@adok3109]

As someone with ocd relating to feelings or people i can say this is pretty accurate in way how can one be consumed by obssesion of person , Oliver needed to leave as soon he started feeling it or therapy 👀💀

[@jaymanuel3396]

I wanted to know more about the butler. What was his deal? It seemed as if he would be more important to the storyline. When he inherits the estate, where are all of the staff? Some things I thought were not explained, did they do a toxicology report on Felix? Did they not know he was poisoned? He obviously caused Elpseth’ accident, no suspicion from the staff or authorities? Did the cops not find it odd, that Elspeth’s feeding tube was yanked out of her? How did he get away with these two murders?

[@sunflowerseed8770]

I think he offed Felix with drugs. Thats why Farleigh was chased out. They didnt care that he was doing coc*ine (Well maybe a little but i think they wouldve overlooked it) but they believed he was responsible for Felix overdosing. Why there was no investigation for Elspeth is still a little blurry i agree with you there.

[@simonorourke4465]

I'm pretty sure that in Felix's case he spiked the champagne with cocaine so Felix's death would just end up being viewed as an accidental overdose. After all it was a massive party and lots of people Felix included were already doing drugs all over the place and without the evidence of the spiked champagne bottle which we see Oliver dispose of they would just assume that Felix overdid it by accident. He even managed to throw suspicion on to Farley by telling the family that Farley was giving out lines of coke and that must of been where Felix got it from. When it comes to Elsbeth I think some suspension of disbelief is maybe required, after all it is a movie rather than real life and things often happen in movies that wouldn't work in the real world. Although I suppose depending on her condition he could have concocted some story about Elsbeth going into a fit and pulling out her own tubes.

[@LeslieField-k1u]

In the case of Felix, the family did not push more because they wanted to avoid embarrassment and being in the tabloids. "Here's a check, make it go away." The feeding tube could be more problematic. I don't know why someone that rich wouldn't have live-in nurses on duty 24 hours a day, but Oliver seemed to have manipulated her into making a lot of bad decisions over those few months. Emerald has said something to the effect that the movie's meant to have a suspension of disbelief, and we only see Oliver's celebration immediately after the Cattons are finished off. It may catch up with him later. A bit like the car accident in Hereditary. Many asked why Peter wasn't grilled or even arrested by cops after his sister died, but perhaps the wheels of justice were just too slow and the family died before that investigation could get going. The police have limited resources.

[@benfel9403]

Saltburn is a town in the UK, that Emerald Fennel heard of and thought it was a cool name to give the fictional house.

[@bettyjones9220]

I loved this reaction editorial….genuine and honest…I subscribed!🙂

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Welcome aboard! So glad you enjoyed

[@HuntingViolets]

Interesting (maybe): the aspect ratio was 4:3, almost a square, the aspect ratio of old movies.

[@jackjohnson5427]

lol you say you are lost but you almost predicted everything right

[@malegutpunching8448]

Ethan: He’s not going to kill anyone, is he?… Me: GIRL!!!!

[@fchho]

You totally missed the Pamela’s death / she did anything for attention joke lol

[@jackjohnson5427]

not you actually predicting the slurping

[@ethanclarkreacts]

I don’t know if I should have been proud to predict that one 😂

[@applejax1017]

"He didn't want any of them, he wanted the life." Yep, and he didn't "love" Felix. This wasn't a love story. He wanted his life. Wanted to possess them all. In the end, he did. Castle, stones, and all!

[@adok3109]

Yeah Emerald said its movie about desire and obssesion on next level

[@thewitchchild5926]

Emerald did say he loved Oliver, which I think is evident throughout the film. I think it's obvious he is lying at the start when he said he wasn't "in love" with him. Everything shown in the film went against that statement. He was totally in love with Felix but yeah it was also an obsession. I think he would like everyone to think he didn't love him but he's not a totally reliable narrator.

[@simonorourke4465]

I thought he was both obsessed with and Iin love with Felix, he originally wants to have everything Felix has but wants to share it with Felix who he is completely obsessed with. Once Felix totally rejects him in the maze though he realises he will never ever have Felix and then his hate takes over and he decides to kill Felix and take everything from him and steal his legacy.

[@Maxwellish]

I think it started with his obsession with Felix, he wasn’t thinking about Saltburn, he lied to keep Felix in and avoid his rejection. Felix sealed his fate when he started to see Oliver for who he really was, he rejected him and that’s when Oliver kills him. but I truly think he regretted it. people forget something, Oliver is a liar. and he’s the narrator throughout. Saltburn had to become his new infatuation, his new obsession. making the best out of the situation he ruined. Felix’s stone is the only one Oliver touches in the end scene. I love these films that get you thinking.

[@applejax1017]

@@Maxwellish ohhhhh I love this interpretation! I believe you are on to something!

[@cinemasenses]

We aren’t dumb at all, you picked up on every plot element along the way even while commenting. It was a movie that made you feel dirty and awful and disgusted at how terrible people can be toward each other. Felix was the breath of fresh air that somehow seemed capable of working around all that, but he was eliminated along the way. Tragic!

[@Psych911]

I want to know what happened to Poor Dear Pamela 😢😂

[@ethanclarkreacts]

‘She’ll do anything for the attention’ but yes 😂 i need to know so bad. I want to know if something fishy was going on

[@salemoh9759]

The actor plays Oliver is also in kinky boots

[@keinark]

How does the lead character look both 19 and 43 at the same time?

[@kengel100]

How did you predict the bath scene? And then draw the line in the weirdest place?😂😅

[@ethanclarkreacts]

I am a bit ashamed that I guessed the bath scene haha and I don't know why but licking a drain is just like the worst thing imaginable in my mind :)

[@applejax1017]

Loved your reaction!!

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Glad you enjoyed! 😊

[@henryriley4958]

The fact that we all went into this movie expecting some cute little gay romance flick 🤣😳

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Right. Everything was really not what I was expecting

[@HuntingViolets]

I don't think you're too dumb for it. It's an odd movie.

[@ethanclarkreacts]

I just felt a bit lost during the middle 😂

[@charliebrown7004]

It reminded me of Parasite a bit.. but it wasn't quite as good

[@thomashernandez8700]

How did Oliver KILL Sir James?

[@Notachanze]

He didn’t….he just…waited a few years for him to die naturally

[@AngelofMusic04]

@@Notachanze I think Sir James committed suicide. The way Elspeth describes his death, saying she was surprised he "waited so long" made it sound like how tightly wound he was and his childrens' deaths drove him over the edge.

[@kathleenclark815]

He didn't

[@rachelBrady-ni]

Their english accents are ok. Barry's was awful he kept slipping into his Irish accent like 90% of the time

[@NightOwl_30]

God you're gorgeous.

[@ethanclarkreacts]

Wow, thank you, you’re too kind 😊

[@b3z3jm3nny]

5:44 the cringiest part of the whole movie!

[@React2This]

Does anyone else think the “another Eddie moment” referred to the maths nerd back at Oxford? I’ve seen theories that maths nerd was the discarded friend from the previous summer. It seemed unlikely to me at first, because Felix didn’t acknowledge that guy’s existence when they were all in the bar, but looking back it makes sense. Maybe the reason Oliver knew exactly how to get “adopted” by Felix is that he knew who had been invited to Saltburn the year before.

[@LeslieField-k1u]

The maths character was named Michael, but he did seem bitter as if Felix had discarded him in the past. But there would have been more than one "fair weather" friend before Oliver, by the way Venetia referred to it.

[@Vlad.Larionov]

Great! It is very interesting to see your reaction to the film Robocop 1987. This is a cool movie 👍🔥🦾