History Film / SuitableFlesh

Dr. Daniella Upton's had a weird few days. There's a mutilated corpse in a body bag in her morgue and her best friend, Dr. Elizabeth Derby, has gone from a polished career woman with an adoring husband to a panicking mental patient in the psych ward at Miskatonic University Hospital in Arkham, Massachusetts, where both women worked. At Dani's insistence, Beth tells her the story of [[HowWeGotHere the events that lead to her downfall]], including her entanglement with handsome, troubled Asa Waite, his mysterious father Ephraim, and the mysterious link between them- and eventually, Beth herself.

* GenderFlip: Asenath Waite becomes Asa, Daniel Upton becomes Daniella, and while there ''is'' a character named Edward Derby, that character's role is taken by this film's Edward's wife, Beth. [[spoiler:Subverted by Ephraim still being a man and possessing his son, rather than his daughter- though perhaps double subverted by Ephraim also being a victim of the body-changer, who might have once been a woman.]]

* GoodSmokingEvilSmoking: Dani Upton vapes, which is framed as perhaps a little silly for her age but fairly harmless and relatable. The body-thieving entity chain-smokes cigarettes, and hand-rolls them if they can get to loose tobacco and rolling papers. [[spoiler:When they've taken over Dani's body in the end, they curiously try her vape, only to end up throwing it in the trash in a coughing fit and digging out their loose tobacco and rolling papers instead.]]

''Suitable Flesh'' is a [[GenderFlip genderflipped]] [[SettingUpdate modern-day]] adaptation of Creator/HPLovecraft's ''Literature/TheThingOnTheDoorstep'' directed by Joe Lynch, and adapted from an unproduced screenplay by ''Film/Re-Animator'' creator and director Creator/StuartGordon (to whom it is also dedicated). It is in some ways a SpiritualSuccessor (alongside ''Film/FromBeyond''), including the return of star Barbara Crampton as Daniella Upton and the original film's modern-day Miskatonic University Hospital and psych ward, including some ''very'' familiar hospital hallways.

As though there was someone- or something else- in his body.

* NotIfTheyEnjoyedItRationalization: Averted. [[spoiler:The being in Beth's body has aggressive, kinky sex with Edward without waiting for an invitation, involving knifeplay. Edward never realizes it's not really Beth, but as we find out later, he ''really'' enjoyed it rough and invites Beth to do it again. Beth, horrified, realizes the being used her body to rape him, and begs for him to go somewhere safe without her so it can't happen again, despite Edward's confusion.]]

* AmbiguousGender: The ancient, evil soul possessing [[spoiler:Ephraim, then Asa, then Beth, and finally Dani. While they express many, ''many'' chauvinistic opinions about women- all the way down to a belief that they should StayInTheKitchen- and prefer male hosts until Beth's body provides an enticing alternative, they can't remember how they were born into their original body and concede that their desire for a man's power might very well have been out of frustration at being a woman.]]

You see, Asa showed up at Beth's psychiatric practice in a state of panic, begging for help much the same way Beth is now- and then suffered a seizure right before Beth's eyes, after which he immediately began acting... ''different''...

* AdaptationSpeciesChange: [[spoiler:Asenath Waite in the original story was half-Deep One, though that never quite comes up in the story. Asa is, as far as we can tell, human.]]
* AmbiguousGender: [[spoiler:The ancient, evil soul possessing Ephraim, then Asa, then Beth, and finally Dani. While they express many, ''many'' chauvinistic opinions about women- all the way down to a belief that they should StayInTheKitchen- and prefer male hosts until Beth's body provides an enticing alternative, they can't remember how they were born into their original body and concede that their desire for a man's power might very well have been out of frustration at being a woman.]]
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Averted. Beth looks rougher and rougher as her life unravels, [[spoiler:and that's not even getting into what happens to the body that used to be Asa's]].
* BodyHorror: [[spoiler:Beth]] repeatedly smashes [[spoiler:the thing possessing the now-dead Asa's body]] with her car, and then repeatedly stabs them for good measure. The results aren't pretty. [[spoiler:Beth in Asa's corpse is even worse, leaving a wide streak of blood as she drags herself one-handed across the hospital floor, trailing intestines behind her and revealing one leg to have been totally severed by her attempt to kill the body-stealing entity.]]