3 Thoughts on Don't Worry Darling

1. The Movie - *major spoilers ahead* I don't know why this movie is getting such terrible reviews from critics. It's a beautifully filmed movie - stunning cinematography, style for days, an interesting story, and an acting performance from Florence Pugh that is Oscar-worthy. Yes, it kind of falls apart during the last 30 minutes. And yes, it's kind of obvious that there is a "modern day" twist to it (although I was thinking more of a cult-like group that set-up camp in the middle of the desert to pretend they are living in the 50s and that they were under some sort of hypnosis - I was not considering the *even more* modern day twist of a virtual reality experience). But I can't just discount or ignore everything that comes before those last 30 minutes - and I was absolutely IN for all of it. It's a very likeable movie, which is why I think there is this huge disconnect between critics and audiences (38% vs 75% RT score). Florence Pugh is consistently given very high praise, and she really deserves it - probably the most consistent actress of her age group. Olivia Wilde, on the other-hand, has been very inconsistent. I've been a fan of hers since The O.C., but I have seen her give some really terrible performances in some of the worst movies to exist. But she's also been great in projects like House and...uh...nothing else is coming to mind, but I love her anyway! I didn't realize how big of a role she has in this, but I thought she was excellent - and she fits into this world so well. And as I've said above, it's a very well-made movie. I am one of the few who didn't think Booksmart was that great. It's an okay movie, but I don't think that there was anything particularly exciting about it - anyone could have made it, really. But I think this shows what she can do far more, so it's unfortunate that it got overshadowed by controversy and the fact that critics are very influenced by their peers (sorry, but it's true - one "big" critic pans it and everyone follows suit). The rest of the supporting cast shine - Chris Pine, once again, proves why he is Hollywood's "Best Chris", Gemma Chan does a really great job practically recreated her robot role that she played in Humans, and KiKi Layne gives a really intense performance that helps create this feeling of uneasiness throughout. I know that it became part of the controversy (more on that later) that her role was reduced, and she didn't really participate in the promotion of the film, but that happens A LOT in the movie business. It wouldn't even have been a talking point if the rest of the controversy didn't exist. And, honestly, I think it serves the story well to not know much about this character. I wish I could just ignore the weakest link in the film, which is definitely Harry Styles, but since everyone pointed it out already - he's not very good. He's not exactly bad, though. I just think he's a bit in over his head. Acting against a talent like Pugh is going to make any amateur actor look bad. His accent is also so inconsistent that it is a huge distraction (meanwhile Pugh's accent is FLAWLESS and her voice is just so soothing). I saw someone try to defend his accent as being done "on purpose", but he's not that good of an actor, so I don't buy that at all (he even admits to not having a clue as to what he's doing - it's embarrassing that he's getting roles over actual actors. Please stop doing this Hollywood!). 

2. The Idea - So, let's talk about this idea, shall we? It's not the most original concept - it's kind of an updated version of The Stepford Wives. But, there is a very fascinating aspect to it, which boils down to the line that occurs during those bonkers final 30 minutes, in which Harry's character says "but you're happy here". I think most are going to focus on the bigger picture of the plot - in which he has imprisoned his wife into this virtual reality 1950s utopia, which is a horrifying idea. The film proceeds to imply that all the women are unaware of what is happening to them except for Wilde (who has a heartbreaking reason for wanting to be there) and Chan (who has an ambiguous end to her story, but I interpret it as her being behind the whole thing - realizes that her husband has failed and decides to take matters into her own hands). But, I'm going to focus on this line of "being happy" because I think it's the more interesting take. And my fascination with it is because it's true. She is happy. She's happy until she realizes that her reality isn't...real. But if it was, then technically, she is living...happily. There's this big push for women to "have it all" that was promoted along with feminism, that always didn't sit right with me. It puts this insane amount of pressure on women that is practically impossible - creating this feeling of being a complete failure all the time. It's bullshit and it also creates a division between women who want a big career and women who want to be either stay-at-home moms or housewives. I constantly have to correct people (both men and women) who describe their mom or a woman in their life as someone who "doesn't work". "Didn't she raise you?" "Yes, but she was a stay-at-home mom" "That's work." "Oh, well yeah, true". And then they feel like an idiot, as they should. And even women who don't have kids or don't want kids are likely still working even if they "stay at home". If they take care of all the household duties while their partner works, then they are still "working" and supporting the household (seriously add up how many hours it takes to clean, do laundry, make dinner, do the grocery shopping, run the household errands, etc. and it's about the same as a full-time job. I added it up once and I think it came to 34 hours per week). And guess what?? Some women are happy doing that instead of "working" for some big corporation that barely pays minimum wage. Why is that so hard for people to understand? I know that I'm speaking in very gender-normative bullshit terms, but my point is more about this idea of being domestic and having that be viewed as something negative or a more submissive role in a relationship. I'm not, in any way, sticking up for the idea of this movie (in case that wasn't clear), I just think it's an interesting thing to think about. She was happy there. Let that sink in. 

3. The Controversy - Unfortunately, it was controversy that couldn't be ignored. And there are so many parts to it - going back to the recasting, the affair between Harry and Olivia, the legal papers handed to Olivia on stage, it's all been fascinating. People can argue that this all would have been a non-issue if Wilde had been a male director (I've seen the tweet multiple times. Blame misogyny!), but I don't buy it - Harry Styles is one of the biggest pop icons in the world; If it were Britney Spears starring in a movie and the male director left his partner and began an affair with Spears, it would be a HUGE controversy. And if a male director lied about firing the lead actor for being an asshole, and it turned out that the lead actor quit instead - it would still be a big story. I don't think we will ever know the truth, but I think it was a combination of both. I do believe that Wilde wanted to make it work with Shia (he may be a toxic, abusive asshole, but he's an incredible actor. There is no denying that), but once she realized she couldn't - the studio let him out of his contract (which is essentially firing someone). Shia is not a reliable source at all, and we don't know the full context of that video that he leaked. I think the most disappointing part of the controversy is the supposed tension between Pugh and Wilde - and Wilde referring to her as "Miss Flo" doesn't do her any favors (although if I were Florence I would adopt that as my nickname until the end of time. "Miss Flo" makes her sound like a badass, confident woman who will take none of your shit). It's always disappointing when there are rumors of two strong women not able to get along on set, because it's such a cliché and always something used against us (and this I'll accept as misogyny, because people don't really give a fuck if two male stars get along on set). It's clear that Florence did not have a good time with this film, and it's also clear that it was so *bad* that the studio supported her decision to not promote it (again, there are contracts involved and stars are legally obliged to do a certain amount of promotion, which is why she *showed up* to the premiere, but did not join the interviews. It was probably a compromise so that she would still participate in future projects). And finally, the wildest part of the controversy, I'm still convinced Styles spit on Chris Pine. There's no other situation that would make Pine look that dumbfounded and disgusted at the same time. And the fact that in Pine's denial of this happening, he offered no other excuse as to what actually happened. It's honestly one of the funniest moments in "behind the scenes" movie history.