Eileen (2023)
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Eileen Movie Review
Eileen is a 2023 psychological thriller film directed by William Oldroyd and starring Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway. It’s a deeply flawed, but interesting experiment.
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“Some people, they are the real people.
Like in a movie, they’re the ones you’re watching, they’re the ones making moves.
And the other people, they’re just there filling the space“
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In 1964 Massachusetts, a young secretary becomes enchanted by Rebecca, the glamorous new counselor at the prison where she works. Their budding friendship soon takes a twisted turn when Rebecca reveals a dark secret. This movie was frustrating to watch. It was a missed potential as it could have been so much better than it ended up being. The mystery thriller elements were ultimately the weakest parts of a film that was much better off as a drama.
Whenever the movie focused on the protagonist’s empty life, it was very effective. The titular Eileen experiences a lot of boredom, dissatisfaction and sexual frustration and the film explored her story so well – her troubled family life with a failure of a father made for a solid storyline while her obsessive attractions were the most intriguing sections in the film.
The crime element introduced later in the second half was the problem as it came abruptly, seemingly coming out of nowhere. It was rushed and simply ineffective. While this storyline was undeniably extremely dark in a memorable, provocative way, it also wasn’t given enough time to cook properly. The ending was quite strong and so was the beginning, but the middle portion of the flick was an entirely different film that simply did not work. The movie would have been much better as a character study drama than as this half-assed neo-noir effort.
Eileen is superbly performed by its talented cast. Marin Ireland was excellent in a very small, but important role. Anne Hathaway looked incredible with the 60s hairstyle and clothing, disappearing into the role and the time period effortlessly. She was so intriguing and cool that the movie unfortunately failed to make more use of her personality. The film hinted at more lesbian action that unfortunately never arrived.
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As for Thomasin McKenzie, this is her career-best performance so fast as she deftly channeled the girl’s deep insecurities, frustrations and obsessions. It’s a great performance in a terrific role. The film is also stylishly made in costumes, score, old-fashioned title font and strong cinematography, but the genre thrills were still sorely lacking here.
Eileen is a disappointing movie that could have been so much better than it turned out to be. The crime element in the second half came out of nowhere, making for an abrupt and ineffective third act. The film was a half-assed neo-noir effort that would have been so much stronger as a character study drama as this is where its true strengths lie – the characterization is excellent, the performances from Anne Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie are outstanding and the dialogue is terrific. It’s a stylish, wonderfully old-fashioned flick that deserved a more confident screenplay.
My Rating – 3.5
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