Alice, Darling movie review

This dramatic movie was released in January and is now available on Amazon Prime.

RATING: R

LENGTH: 1 hour 30 minutes

IN A NUTSHELL:

Oscar® nominee Anna Kendrick (“Up in the Air”) stars as a woman pushed to the breaking point by her psychologically abusive boyfriend, Simon. While on vacation with two close girlfriends, Alice rediscovers the essence of herself and gains some much-needed perspective. Slowly, she starts to fray the cords of codependency that bind her. But Simon’s vengeance is as inevitable as it is shattering – and, once unleashed, it tests Alice’s strength, her courage, and the bonds of her deep-rooted friendships.

This is the directorial debut of Mary Nighy. It was written by Alanna Francis.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Kids will be bored. Besides that, it’s inappropriate for children.
Profanity, including F-bombs
Crude conversations about male body parts and talk of sex
A single woman takes a picture of her chest to send to her boyfriend.
We see an unmarried couple in the shower and bed (nothing revealing)
There’s an awkward clothed sex scene

THEMES:

Emotionally abusive relationships
Red flags of controlling behavior
Friendship
Trusting your instincts
Anxiety
Honesty
Self-punishment
Shame
Remember who you are

THINGS I LIKED:

I’m such a fan of Anna Kendrick. She does a good job in this, although I don’t think it’s her best work. In reality, she kind of plays a similar character in most of her movies. Even still, I like her.
The rest of the cast includes Kaniehtiio Horn, Wunmi Mosaku, and Charlie Carrick.
The story mostly takes place at and around a lakehouse with beautiful views of trees and water.
There is a side story about a missing young woman that people in the community are desperately searching for. It makes an impact on Anna Kendrick’s character and is a sober reminder that kidnappings occur often all around us.
Hopefully, this movie will be a warning to women to carefully consider the red flags in their relationships and to stay connected to their friends who are committed to telling the truth and protecting one another.
We see a character literally pull her hair out. Self-punishment is a serious sign that something is not right.
The storytelling is fairly straightforward and simple, yet makes an impact.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

It’s advertised as a thriller, yet there really isn’t anything suspenseful to earn that title until the last 10 minutes.
Simon is portrayed as the villain, yet the flashbacks don’t paint the angry, violent man we’re supposed to believe he is. We definitely see a few glimpses, especially in the end, but it makes the audience also wonder if Anna Kendrick’s character is just naturally unhinged since we don’t get to see what she was like before the events in the movie.
It’s very slow-moving.
There’s a scene where the girlfriends sing while walking down a street. We know two of the actresses can sing very well in real life, so it was disappointing to hear them sound awful in that scene. I would love to have heard Anna Kendrick sing the closing song.

FUNNY LINES:

Not really. It’s a serious drama.