Widows (2018)

Huge doesn’t even come close to describe how big of a fan I am of Steve McQueen, the British director not the American actor. It comes without saying that I was very looking forward to Widows, his fourth feature film. Unfortunately, my cinema didn’t show it so I had to wait for the home release to watch it.

The story follows three women who don’t know each other, Veronica Rawlings (Viola Davis), Alice (Elizabeth Debicki), and Amanda (Michelle Rodriguez), and whose only connection is their criminal husbands who got killed by the police during a heist. When Veronica learns that her husband, Harry (Liam Neeson), stole $2 million from Jamal Manning (Brian Tyree Henry), a crime boss and politician, and that Jamal wants her to give him his money back, she enlists the other widows and decides to carry out a $5 million worth heist planned by his late husband.

Widows is completely different from the films McQueen has made so far —Hunger, Shame, and 12 Years a Slave— and you can tell right away from its plot whose purpose is mainly to entertain —he still addresses sexual, political and racial issues, but they are on the background— and it’s entertaining. And engaging and interesting. The problem is that there are too many subplots and not enough time to develop all of them properly —it feels like a collection of stories with a forced connection—, there are many plot holes and coincidences, and the twist, although you don’t see it coming, doesn’t quite have the effect it’s supposed to have.

The characters too were a bit of a disappointment. This is the first time McQueen focuses on female characters and, since Gillian Flynn co-wrote the screenplay with him, I was expecting great characters. Unfortunately, they aren’t that fleshed out —because of this, I found it hard to connect emotionally with them—, and, if it wasn’t for the actresses playing them, they would be overshadowed by the male characters.

The cast, as I was saying, does a wonderful job though and makes you forget the many flaws in the script. Viola Davis is great as usual in the role of a strong woman who is very reminiscent of her character from How to Get Away With Murder, Michelle Rodriguez is feisty as always, Chyntia Erivo is barely in the film and yet manages to make a strong impression, but it's Elizabeth Debicki who steals the show for me as a fragile, vulnerable housewife who is done being mistreated. The actors also do a good job, the strongest performance coming from Daniel Kaluuya as he delivers quite a terrifying performance in the role of a psychotic henchman. 

20th Century Fox

Great performances from the cast aren't the only thing that McQueen delivers with Widows though. The tension he builds is nothing short of spectacular and keeps you on the edge of your seat for most of the film's running time. The cinematography is beautiful and adds a sense of realism to the film and the thrilling score fits the story very well. 

Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)

I was pretty excited to see Bad Times at the El Royale, and it was not only because Chris Hemsworth is half-naked every time he's on screen, but because the promotional material had me intrigued. Unfortunately, my theatre didn't show it so I had to wait for home release. 

The story takes place in a remote hotel on the California-Nevada border, the El Royale, in 1969. One day during the off-season, the concierge and sole employee at the hotel, Miles Miller (Lewis Pullman) welcomes four unique individuals: Daniel Flynn (Jeff Bridges), a Catholic priest; Darlene Sweet (Cynthia Erivo), a struggling soul singer; Laramie Seymour Sullivan (Jon Hamm) who claims to be a vacuum cleaner salesman; and Emily Summerspring (Dakota Johnson), a rude woman. They each have their secret and over the course of the night, they will show their true selves.

I'm going to stop right there as going any further into the plot would spoil it for you, in case you haven't seen the film yet. It's not a spoiler though that the plot, although it's quite thin and its twists aren't always as surprising as they should be, is throughout very compelling and interesting as director Drew Goddard —he also wrote the screenplay— makes wonderful use of flashbacks, which are important to enrich the plot, and alternative point of views.

In Bad Time at the El Royale, Goddard took plenty of time to introduce, give depth and develop the characters and it did pay off as the film has interesting, three-dimensional characters you can care about —I ended up rooting against Chris Hemsworth's character, that's how much I cared about some of the others.

The performances are also great. Jeff Bridges gives yet another excellent performance in the role of Father Flynn as he handles the character's oddness and eccentricities very well. Jon Hamm, whome I wish had more screen time, does a great job as the salesman as he brings his charm along with nice comedic timing. Chris Hemsworth gives a charming performance as cult leader Billy Lee. Dakota Johnson is surprisingly good as Emily, especially if you consider she isn't given a lot to do. The standouts, however, are Cynthia Erivo whose singing performance delivers the character's emotions to perfection, and Lewis Pullman who pulls off an apparently dull character beautifully.

20th Century Fox

Goddard was able to build tension and mystery, while also balancing drama and dark comedy. There's a lot of violence but it somewhat feels appropriate. The cinematography is stunning with its lush colours, the production design is superb, and the soundtrack is fantastic.

Overall, it feels like Bad Times at the El Royale is a Tarantino wannabe but, ultimately, I didn't care because the execution is great, and the film is a hell of a fun ride.