Saltburn · reception & legacy

2023 · Emerald Fennell

How Saltburn has been received, argued over, and remembered.

The arc

Critics were split on release in late 2023 — 'style over substance' was the recurring knock — but once it hit Prime Video over the holidays it became a full-blown viral phenomenon, arguably the most talked-about film of that winter. The gap between its lukewarm awards run and its enormous cultural moment is now part of its story.

What's debated

The endless fight: is it a razor-sharp provocation or an 'eat the rich' satire with nothing actually to say — shock scenes doing the work that ideas should?

Its footprint

The bathtub scene and the final naked dance through the manor became instant memes, and Sophie Ellis-Bextor's 'Murder on the Dancefloor' re-charted globally more than twenty years after release off the back of that ending. There was even a Jacob Elordi 'bathwater' scented candle.

Where it stands

A defining Letterboxd-era divisive fave — half the reviews are one star, half are five, and that's exactly why everyone's seen it.

★ Did you know? It was shot at Drayton House in Northamptonshire, a privately owned estate that had never before been used as a filming location — and Fennell shot it in the boxy 1.33:1 aspect ratio to make the house feel like a world you're peering into.

Named by the director

Influences Emerald Fennell has publicly named — the director's own word, distinct from the inferred lines of influence.

The Go-Between (1971) — Fennell cited it as core to the British country-house tradition she was working in, where class, power and sex collide in one place.
The Servant (1963) — She cited Losey's film for its erotic power built entirely on the threat of the status quo being upended — and has called it one of her favourite films.
Joseph Losey — Fennell repeatedly invoked 'that very specific Joseph Losey world' of English houses, class and desire as the film's touchstone.