The Reflecting Skin

The Reflecting Skin is a 1990 coming-of-age horror film written and directed by Philip Ridley and starring Jeremy Cooper, Viggo Mortensen, and Lindsay Duncan. Set in 1950s rural Idaho, the film follows an impressionable young boy who comes to believe that a neighboring widow is a vampire responsible for a number of disappearances in the community. Described by its director as a "mythical interpretation" of childhood, the film weaves elements of vampirism, surrealism, black comedy, symbolism, and religious zealotry throughout its narrative.

A co-production between the United Kingdom and Canada via BBC Films and Téléfilm Canada, The Reflecting Skin was shot on location in Crossfield, Alberta, a rural suburb of Calgary.

The Reflecting Skin premiered at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival, where it received critical acclaim. It was theatrically released in the United Kingdom in November 1990 by Virgin Vision. In the United States, the film was acquired for distribution by Miramax Films, who gave it a limited theatrical release on 28 June 1991.