‘Saccharine’ Spoilers And Ending Explained: Midori Francis Body Horror!

CinemAddicts co-host Eric Holmes and I discuss our respective love for the body horror film Saccharine and we also dive into spoilers. We talk about the movie (spoiler-free) for a little over 18 minutes and then we spend the rest of the video giving our Saccharine interpretations. Check out our video below!

Read more: ‘Saccharine’ Spoilers And Ending Explained: Midori Francis Body Horror!

Midori Frances Delivers A Memorable Performance In Body Horror Thriller

Saccharine centers on Hana (Midori Francis), a medical student who digests weight loss pills which are partly made of human ash! Coincidentally, Hana and several of her colleagues are working on a cadaver (which one student nicknames Bertha) and she ultimately uses parts of that body to create more pills. On top of that horrific life choice, Hana believes she sees the ghost of Bertha, and this supernatural force may be feeding of Hana’s body! When taking these pills and supposedly seeing the ghost, Hana continues to binge eat but loses weight in the process.

Now playing in select theaters, Saccharine is directed by Relic filmmaker Natalie Erika James and co-stars Madeleine Madden as Hana’s prospective love interest Alanya. Danielle Macdonald co-stars as Josie, Hana’s close friend who plays a pivotal role during the movie’s final act.

Saccharine Spoilers Start Now!

One of the big reveals from Saccharine centers on Hana’s father, as we find out that he is confined to his own room due to his obesity. Hana’s mother has been understandably overworked and frustrated as his caregiver (she installs a security camera in their kitchen!). Filmmaker James’ own father had weight issues, and part of that experience is assumedly interwoven in the story.

The third act, when Hana decides to take a growth from her stomach because she’ll be rid of Bertha’s ghost, is one of the film’s several gross out scenes. As she slashes her stomach and puts her hand inside her body, Hana understands she will eventually get close to passing out. Thus, Josie is on hand to save Hana from bleeding out and dying.

In the midst of this incision, Hana imagines herself back at the bottom of a garbage chute (which we see earlier in the story). There she encounters Bertha who gradually moves towards Hana for the final confrontation. Bertha, if I recall, puts Hana’s hand in her mouth and as she bites down we cut to the sound of a slap. Josie wakes up Hana a permanent deep sleep, saving her in the process.

Saccharine Ending Explained!

Hana and Josie attend a funeral service for the cadavers, and they pay their respects to Bertha. We are lead to believe that after Hana’s near death experience, she has cut off the connection with Bertha. Unfortunately, the ghost still lives within Hana, as her initial kiss with lover Alanya leads to Alanya’s murder (we see Hana start to bite down on Josie!).

Is is now Josie’s corpse that is on full display on a couch, and that image directly refers to an image (again, if I recall!) that was adorned on the medical school earlier in the movie. Josie is the latest “food” for Hana, as her body parts will be ground up to make more pills to make the cycle continue!

Check out our full Saccharine movie review and spoilers/ending discussion below:

Share your thoughts and review of Saccharine in the comments!