With all the franchises, remakes, sequels and prequels out there, it's certainly nice to see that Hollywood can produce a film that is different and original to woo us at this time of year. Thrillers can be an interesting genre, but throw in a number of twists and turns and viola, you are offered "Widows".
This is the story of four women with nothing in common except a huge debt left behind by their dead husbands' criminal activities. Set in contemporary Chicago, amid a time of turmoil, tensions build when Veronica (Viola Davis), Alice (Elizabeth Debicki), Linda (Michelle Rodriguez) and Belle (Cynthia Erivo) take their fate into their own hands and conspire to forge a future on their own terms. Couple this with political corruption between rivals Jack Mulligan (Colin Farrell) and Jamal Manning (Brian Tyree Henry) battling it out in an eminent election, and this is friction with shattering effects, replete with twists and turns aplenty. This is a blistering, modern-day thriller set against the backdrop of crime, passion and corruption that will have you wondering what's around the next corner.
Others to round out the cast are Robert Duvall as Tom Mulligan, Jack's father, Liam Neeson as Harry Rawlings, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Carlos, Jon Bernthal as Florek, Coburn Goss as Jimmy Nunn, Lukas Haas as David, Jacki Weaver as Agnieszka, Daniel Kaluuya as Jatemme Manning, Jamal's brother, Garrett Dillahunt as Bash, James Vincent Meredith as John, Kevin J. O'Connor as Bobby Welsh and Michael J. Harney as Fuller.
This was directed with well-delineated clarity by Steve McQueen ("Hunger" '08, "Shame" '11, "12 Years a Slave" '13) plus TV and a ton of shorts. This is one of those filmmakers that come along rarely with minimal feature film experience and prove themselves as a consummate director with as little as a couple of films to their credit. Because of his ability to convey amazing emotions from the characters in each movie, his films become captivating as the film unfolds. One can't wait to see what he does next. It was written well by Gillian Flynn ("Gone Girl" '14) plus novels and TV, and McQueen ("Hunger" '08, "Shame" '11) plus TV and shorts, which is based on "Widows" by Lynda La Plante. As with McQueen's directing, Flynn's writing is so polished that one yearns to see more films written by her. Her "Gone Girl" was one powerfully written film, but considering it was based on her novel, that might make the screenplay more powerful. This script took a little time getting going--it seemed a bit slow, but once it got going, it was an incredibly cohesive, well thought out plot that kept its audience on the edge of their seats. The twists and turns simply hit you right in the face and the character develop, especially that of Veronica, played by the consummate Viola Davis, was delineated with perfection. The script of "Gone Girl" was a bit more polished, but this wasn't too far behind. Couple that of McQueen's input and this film gave you that one two punch. It would be interesting to see these two filmmakers in another collaboration.
Like "Shutter Island", "No Way Out", "Prisoners'", "Gone Girl" and the like, the thriller genre can be riveting especially with twists and turns you just don't see coming. This film is no exception to that rule, so if you want to be sitting on the edge of your seat as the film journeys, you don't want to miss this--just be patient, because before you realize it, it punches you right in the face.
Out of 4 Stars: 3 Rated: R 129mins.
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