Sweat review: A sharp, perceptive and ultimately ruthless look at influencer culture

Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Get our The Life Cinematic email for free SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. In its opening scene, we’re introduced to Sylvia Zajac, whose slick blonde ponytail, pink athletic gear and dazzling perma-smile make her look like a living Barbie doll – a carefully manicured image of perfection projected to her 600,000 Instagram followers. Swedish director Magnus von Horn’s film, set in Warsaw, is sharp, perceptive, and ultimately ruthless when it comes to life under the yoke of social media. Sylvia Zajac not only has to project an image of accessibility, but also of constant availability Von Horn isn’t afraid to push his film into increasingly dark territory, while expanding his central thesis to include the broader notion that women are constantly expected to perform emotional labour even at the very moment they’re being traumatised. An influencer like Sylvia not only has to project an image of accessibility, but also of constant availability – she is everyone’s friend, all of the time.