WIDOWS (2018) Review
Set in contemporary Chicago, amidst a time of turmoil, four women with nothing in common except a debt left behind by their dead husbands' criminal activities, take fate into their own hands, and conspire to forge a future on their own terms.
WIDOWS may be a technically well made film by director Steve McQueen, but the writing from him and Gillian Flynn is laughable at times. Parts of the film are bogged down by political themes and plot threads that are either unsatisfying or left unresolved. The cast perform well but you'll have to contend with messy characterisation, convenient occurrences, bloated runtime and a lazy script.
Even with Viola Davis playing 'Veronica', who whips her fellow widows into shape, I found it difficult to believe how they could pull off the heist after witnessing their amateur planning. Cynthia Erivo (who was great in Bad Times At The El Royale) is wasted here playing 'Belle', introduced as a babysitter/salon worker who's suddenly asked (very late into the movie) to be the getaway driver, yet we never see her driving skills, but it's okay because we're shown her competence in running fast and reconnaissance. Daniel Kaluuya is randomly killing and torturing people because BAD GUY! Jon Bernthal has even less screen time here than in Baby Driver. The back drop of local elections sees Robert Duvall and Colin Farrell play father and son political drama that goes nowhere. And randomly thrown into the mix is the back story of Viola Davis and Liam Neeson's son, a young black male stopped by the police and shot dead.
There's a lot to like here, mainly in the direction and a few performances, but for me WIDOWS is one of the most disappointing films of this year.
