Went to the movies last night. It’s what we do in winter. Because that’s when they bring out the good stuff. The proper films. In the run-up to the Oscars. During the summer its just ‘kid’s shit’ but I don’t like sitting in the dark when its sunny outside anyway, so we rarely go. But when winter comes…

Virtually everyone I know seems to be a ‘film buff’. That is defined by knowing not just who stars in any particular film (that’s just a ‘movie-goer’) but who directs it too (ahhh, you’re a film buff…) And one such person told me a couple months ago that as a member of the BFI (oooooh, real film buff) she went to lots of not-yet-released stuff at the London Film Festival. And the best was called ‘Widows’. Directed by Steve McQueen (so a real film buff comment) and a ‘heist’ movie, but different.

In fact its a Lynda La Plante story that became a tv series a few years back, which I never watched, so I really had no idea what the eponymous movie was going to be, other than guessing that it probably involved a few dead husbands. And it starred Viola Davies, the Oscar winner, and was directed by Steve McQueen who is awesome. And the reviews had all been sensational and the critics unanimous in their superlatives and praise and wonder.

And its shit.

Not like, total, ‘I’m bored’ kind of shit, more a type of ‘this really doesn’t add up’ version. And from there, ‘so I really can’t be bothered’. Because once you doubt anything on a movie screen, the contract is broken and the deal’s off. And doubt I did. Plus it is almost agonisingly long-winded so you find yourself thinking ‘why do we have to watch this? GET ON WITH THE PLOT’. And in fact its so long-winded about stuff that wasn’t so important that the actual heist, the crux of the movie, was almost glossed over. Oh yeah, well any group of totally amateur but heart-broken and financially desperate women could steal 5 million bucks, that’s easy-peasy. Just one run round the block looking at the intended scene of the crime tells you all you need to know.

The cast was stellar. Viola is powerful. Liam Neeson over-acted for all he’s worth. Colin Farrell was in it as a pantomime baddy, Robert Duval (all bow), and Jacob Haas. Who was ‘the kid in Witness’, Kelly McGillis’ Amish son. Who still looks the same. Which is odd and very deer-in-the-headlights.

In fact the best thing about the movie is Elizabeth Debicki. She is wonderfully watchable and had the funniest lines.

So although this film ticked many political boxes; women’s empowerment, women in power, powerful women, women killing people as well as men do, women… you get the idea, it just didn’t work. Not for me.

Happy Sunday

The Movie Buff
Xxxx