Promising Young Woman (2020)

Revenge thrillers look simple on paper as formulaic romp but can get difficult to execute and standout from the numerous movies within that topic. Typically they involve getting the audience to sympathize with the protagonist after experienced some sort of loss (or fell prey to a harsh action themselves), are driven in their interactions with those who are connected to the perpetrator, and having a confrontation with an engaging outcome. With the amount of entries within this subgenre, new projects would need something unique about it to rise above the formula. This brings us to a new revenge movie, Promising Young Woman, which was the directorial debut of Emerald Fennell. It gained a lot of buzz after its premiere with film festivals starting in 2020, most of them highlighting the screenplay and the lead actress performance. It was publicly release in video on demand after getting delayed from its theatrical date due to COVID-19. I rented it on Amazon for $19.99 to see if it can bring something interesting to the 2020 filmography I've experienced and ended up being impressed by its strengths, though not loving it like the critics have.

What's it about? Taking place years after dropping out of medical school due to a traumatic event, the story follows a woman who aims to avenge her loved one against the perpetrator. While the typical narrative structure remains mostly intact here, the approach it takes with its premise contains a good fair amount of intrigue just by the behavior of the main character. The way she interacts with those around her whether its strangers or if its with someone she recognizes, there's an uneasiness throughout where you don't know what she's capable of. There's also relevant commentary (both in movie and real life) regarding gender where it comments on the social actions of a predator-prey situations between men and women. What's interesting is how there are very few likable characters, even the protagonist is more of an anti-hero between her intentions and actions she takes (nothing violent but more psychological). 

There are issues with the execution that holding it back in its quality in this directorial debut. The negatives are primarily focused in the third act in term overall ending. With how interesting the first 2 acts were, the final part takes on some a plot cliche that's not overused in other media but is familiar enough to recognize. The ending feels a bit off since what happens the outcome feels too convenient. It's not an awful execution but felt like it needed more polishing to get a bit more satisfaction. 

 

How are the actors? In regards to story importance, the actress to focus on are Carey Mulligan. Carey's amazing performance is a primary reason to watch this as she effortlessly keeps viewers on edge unsure about what her next actions will be. Honestly this thriller wouldn't have worked as well as it does without her involvement as it's difficult to think of other actresses who could match her prowess. The impression she leaves can even make her a contender to be a horror villain if a project even needed one. Honorable mention goes to Bo Burnham for bringing a nice amount of charisma along with his chemistry with Mulligan. Dishonorable mentions go to Chris Lowell and Max Greenfield for being directed into hamming up their performances way too much to the point where they took me out of their respective scenes in the final third. 

 

Overall Consensus: Promising Young Woman is a fascinating revenge film whose familiar narrative structure is made engaging to watch thanks to some good directing, mostly solid screenplay, and an amazing lead performance. ⭑⭑⭑⭑ Runtime: 1 hour 53 minutes R

 

Reasons to watch it: You are a fan of the aforementioned actors. You are in the mood for a thriller with relevant social commentary. You don't mind sensitive serious subject matter like rape being involved. You like a protagonist who leaves you guessing on what they will do next. 

 

Reasons to avoid it: You aren't a fan of the aforementioned actors. You aren't in the mood for a thriller with relevant social commentary. You have issues sensitive serious subject matter like rape being involved. You have a problem with a plot convenient ending.