Starring: Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, Chris Pine
Director: Olivia Wilde
Released: 2022
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Box Office: $31,848,525
Now whether you’ve heard about this movie because you or someone around you is a Harry Styles fan, you were thrilled by the saga that was the entire Venice film festival (spit gate am I right?) or you’re just a big fan of drama/thriller movies. There is a very good chance you’ve heard about the film. I’ll be honest with you I was skeptical at first and while the movie isn’t perfect, overall I really enjoyed it. As it has only been out a matter of days I will make this review spoiler free, but I would happily do a fully in-depth analysis so when it becomes available to buy look out for that.
If you don’t know what this film is about I’ll give you a quick synopsis. We are introduced to the lives of serval couples in the 1950’s who live in a classic suburb surrounded by desert somewhere in America. The main couple we follow are Alice (Pugh) and Jack (Styles) who quite frankly seem like the perfect couple with the perfect life and relationship but very soon into the film, our protagonist Alice learns things may not be as they seem and we as the viewer follow her as she learns more about herself and the people around her.
First and foremost I have to talk about the cast. It is without doubt that without Pugh’s incredible performance that there is no guarantee this film would be as good as it is. We see her evolve from this naive housewife to someone on a mission, looking for answers and not afraid to cause some ‘problems’ to get them. She also does an incredibly good job of showing that although she can hold her ground and stand up for herself she is just as confused as the audience and scared as to what is happening in her life. I feel Harry Styles wasn’t an amazing casting choice but he wasn’t terrible. Him and Pugh have great chemistry and you do root for their relationship throughout the film but I don’t feel the part was made for him. One casting critique I do feel quite strongly about is that Chris Pine is too big a name for the role he was given. Pine plays the character of Frank, the ‘leader’ of this town, if not almost a God to them and from the beginning shown as the villain. However when I watched it I just thought “oh hey its Chris Pine, how bad can he be?” I feel a more not necessarily unknown but maybe just less popular and slightly older actor would’ve had more impact and kept me immersed in the story just that little bit more.
I also must commend Olivia Wilde as this film was directed exquisitely. I feel the use of music was smart and really gripped you in certain scenes. The way she used the camera to make us feel as though we were fly’s on the wall watching these people’s everyday lives like some sort of reality show but also making us feel we are part of it and being watched ourselves. Considering this is only her second feature film following Booksmart which was released in 2019. It was a brave and bold choice to make but I really don’t think anyone could have done it better.
I’m not going to pretend this film is perfect because like most it has it flaws. There are times when I felt myself saying “come on show us the twist” but I understand that suspense needs to be built up and it benefited the film in the long run. I could also see how they could make a sequel of this film where it left off and honestly I’d be very interested in watching that. If you can tell I would recommend this film, which is in cinemas now and I’ve left a link to the trailer below if you haven’t seen it and I’ve piqued your interested.
Cinema & Chapters by Peggy 