witster18

PYW is a smart and entertaining tonal mish-mash starring Carey Mulligan as a vengeful, witty, supposed-killer. There is a delicate balance between the films' disturbing subject matter, its' dark humor/satire, poignancy and stylization.

Fennels' debut is undeniably fascinating. Now, it's not Antal's "Kontroll(Control/87/100)" fascinating, nor Mendes' American Beauty(90/100), beautiful, but she definitely scores here with sharp casting, storyline, and pure-shock value. Mulligan is fantastic. The opening sequence is fantastic. I guess, after the title sequence, I was hoping the whole thing would go robert rodriguez' grindhouse aesthetic. I understand what the film was going-for in terms of content restraint and anti-exploitation, but the abandonment of the typical exploitation look/gore kinda hurts the film imo. It could have exploited the heck out of every aspect except the women, and still served its' message, no?

The opening and title sequence have a pleasant grind-house quality. I wish the film had kept that sharp edge/stylization throughout, but it gets slightly-less visually creative as it goes. At times, it looks a bit too much like its' light-hearted indy!roots. I wish it would have been a bit darker and more serious in tone tbh, but then again, Anna Kendrick's "Woman of the Hour(75/100)" did that, and was no better than this(both are pretty good - despite my criticisms).

The film does an excellent job with the late twists and its' unexpectedly "tidy" conclusion. It is entertaining and certainly buzz-worthy. Straight to '20s Top-25 List.

You'll like this if you liked: American Psycho(better), Spring Breakers(much worse), Brick(slightly better), or Deathproof(better).

76/100.

Glen Powell is a rising star, as Netflix's "Hitman" displays. Jonathan Majors is also a rising star. His performance in Creed 3 had me weighing if he was the best villain of the entire series. I had wanted to watch this one for a while because the trailer looked solid, and that's before I watched the performances of the two leads in those other films. For what it's worth, I gave all 3 films 6-7 (inc this one) a 7/10(Hitman 74, Creed 3 71, and Devotion 68. This is a 6.5 - 68/100

It's solid, but it is more of a heartfelt drama and character study than an action or "warfilm". It reminded me a bit of "men of honor" starring DeNiro and Gooding Jr., with similar results and tone. Devotion has high production values. The film looks great, and the action sequences do too, but it is a deliberately-paced film, and at over 2 hours will draw angst from impatient viewers and action-popcorn fans.

That said, patient viewers who enjoy solid performances may be smitten. I was. I should mention: Christina Jackson is also solid as Majors wife. Majors knocks it out of the park, and Powell balances things out. However, i feel like the film was limited due to staying true to the story and subject matter, which is both a compliment, and perhaps a bit of a crutch. I'm not one to just throw the real story out the window, but a little embellishment or controversy here might have gone a long way.

The film tells an important story, but it is also a bit too safe, too slow, and too anti-climactic to have the resonating impact(and scores) that the production and performances deserve. I enjoyed the film, personally, but the criticisms are accurate. I'm a genxer, meaning I dont need "Revenge of the Fallen(45)" or "300(83)" to be entertained. In another era - this would be more highly regarded. Recommended for those with patience, who enjoy solid performances and production value, but not recommended for those who need more action and cgi to be entertained.

You'll like this if you liked: Men of Honor(about equal), An Officer and A Gentleman(better), or Black Book(zwartbook/subt/better). This could hold a top 25 spot for 2022. Bottom half, but still.