If you have been employed in any capacity you are surely able to relate to The Mill, Sean King O’Grady’s (We Need to Do Something) new science fiction thriller. Social media has romanticised the ‘’grind’’, the soul-crushing devotion needed to succeed in the working world. Prosperity and financial security is your reward if you know how to play the game. Lil Rel Howery (Get Out) stars as our unlucky protagonist Joe, a middle manager at a corporate company called Mallard, who wakes up to find himself imprisoned in an open ceiling cell with a large grist mill at its centre. It’s not immediately clear what Joe needs to do or why he is here but through a fellow prisoner who advises him through a wall vent, Joe quickly establishes that there is no way out unless he plays by Mallard’s rules.
After repeated attempts to escape and loud protestations, Joe receives communication from the powers that be; Mallard has utilised a female voice who informs him that he must push the grist mill in a circle a predetermined number of times to prove his worth as an employee. Using a female voice to deliver this news is a deliberate attempt to ‘soften’ this unreasonable instruction but it does work to illustrate that men and women alike are guilty of workplace exploitation.
As expected, pushing the grist mill is back-breaking work and Joe’s blistered hands are evidence of his very literal grind. But the task at hand is not that simple, if Joe exceeds his quota he puts his fellow prisoners in jeopardy, if he fails to meet his quota he puts his own life at risk. If he meets his quota Mallard will ‘reward’ him by increasing it! Like any employee working in a corporate individualistic structure, Joe is torn between obeying Mallard’s demands to ensure his safety and joining forces with his fellow prisoners by withholding their labour as a power move. The air of secrecy amongst the unseen prisoners echoes the secrecy in workplace environments where you never know how much your co-worker earns or who is on the chopping block. The Mill succeeds at illustrating the futility of transparency as there will always be one person who will insist on looking out for number one.
The grist mill serves as heavy symbolism of what it means to be a cog in the corporate machine. Inequalities, unachievable goals, and a lack of resources are rebranded as character-building and necessary to cut the wheat from the chaff. If you know how to play the game and make minimal complaints ascending the corporate ladder is not impossible. But as The Mill demonstrates there will be casualties along the way.
Howery makes a solid effort as our lead even going so far as to refuse knowing where the film is set and entering blindfolded. At times his line delivery comes across as more comical than dramatic and it’s unclear whether this is due to his outstanding natural comedic talent or the direction he is given. The script is a little heavy-handed at delivering its themes of workplace exploitation and the flippant testimonies from the unseen characters only serve to weaken the film’s message.
The one location setting for the majority of the film creates a sense of claustrophobia and isolation but without seeing the consequences of insubordination that the other prisoners suffer it dilutes if not sanitizes the very real consequences of workplace abuse. This is not to suggest that violence must be onscreen to be effective in creating fear and terror. One need only look at Michael Haneke’s Funny Games for an example of how violence hors champ can still produce real terror that if done right is more frightening than anything a director may show us. Is it possible to ascend the corporate ladder while keeping your integrity intact? How much abuse must an employee endure to garner success? The final act may divide audiences as to whether these questions are answered in full. What is alluded to suggests there is a more interesting story to be told in how an employee may choose to fight back against an abusive workplace culture.
The Mill is currently available to stream on Hulu.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxu1zTco8-I]
The final act may divide audiences as to whether these questions are answered in full. What is alluded to suggests there is a more interesting story to be told in how an employee may choose to fight back against an abusive workplace culture.
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Athina Clarke is a neurodivergent freelance writer from the UK.
