Directed by:
Steve McQueenCinematography:
Sean BobbittComposer:
Hans ZimmerCast:
Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debicki, Cynthia Erivo, Colin Farrell, Brian Tyree Henry, Daniel Kaluuya, Garret Dillahunt, Carrie Coon (more)VOD (3)
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From acclaimed director Steve McQueen and co-writer Gillian Flynn comes a blistering, modern-day thriller with a powerful ensemble cast. When four armed robbers are killed in a failed heist attempt, their widows - with nothing in common except a debt left by their dead husbands’ criminal activities - take fate into their own hands to forge a future on their own terms. (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment)
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Reviews (9)
An unbelievably racist and gender-biased film. No white man is innocent. McQueen serves up an unorthodox heist flick in which girls have to take care of things by themselves. The brilliant and vibrant Zimmer sets the pace and the female cast rocks. Out of all of them, Elizabeth Debicky is the most captivating (and not just visually). The twist with Neeson is unusual. The political storyline is reminiscent of The Wire. The ending is deeply ironic. P.S. Jon Bernthal didn’t last long. (joke, ha ha).
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The collaboration between McQueen and Zimmer promised a gripping experience full of tension and a mature touch. While I did experience these feelings a few times during the film, I wouldn't label it as fully successful. The cast is outstanding, no doubt about that. Viola Davis, in particular, doesn’t need to prove anything anymore, but she still delivered a top-notch, profoundly HUMAN performance. This aspect is often lacking in films. The father-son duo of Farrell and Duvall also shone, but their storyline could have used more screen time; I wouldn’t have minded at all. Moreover, Daniel Kaluuya steals a few moments for himself, sending chills down my spine. The idea of a heist carried out by widows initially appealed to me, but the film’s execution of this original and clever concept didn’t impress me as much. There’s also a lack of deep understanding of the main female characters since the film doesn’t delve into their relationships much, which is a disappointment. However, I admit that by the end, I was as tense as could be. Add Zimmer’s thunderous score and the chilling actions of everyone involved, and you get a positive outcome. It’s worthy of four stars, but it has its shortcomings, preventing it from soaring higher. A shame. I give it 70%.
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After a string of dramas, Steve McQueen has made heist movie, a drama about widows who lost their husbands to criminals and now are left with huge debts and problems with people you don't want to associate with. Acting wise the film is top notch, but if you go to the cinema to see The Punisher or Liam Neeson you will probably be disappointed. But there is still a great Colin Farrell and a solid female cast with a tough Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez and a sexy Elizabeth Debicki, whom I liked the most. Apart from the actors, it is a realistic story full of complications and one very solid twist with a couple of minor twists, decent cinematography and a well paced heist finale that left me breathless at times. Unfortunately the film is over two hours long and apart from a good opening and finale, it doesn't offer that much interesting and I couldn't bear the deaf passages, unfortunately. Decent craftsmanship and acting quality, but it didn't really grow on me. 65%
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I'm not usually into heist movies, but this one was different. I was never bored and waited anxiously to see what would happen next. The credit for this goes not only to the clever script but also to the very solid music and decent performances by most of the cast. This time I would like to highlight especially the ladies, although the gentlemen were not bad at all. I most enjoyed the passages in which the trio of actresses Viola Davis, Elizabeth Debicki, and Cynthia Erivo (either together or separately) made their presence felt. To be fair, I must add that Robert Duvall also played his role very convincingly. (85%)
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Widows has the parameters of a great film, but in order to fulfil them, it should build psychological depth with something more sophisticated than long shots of the faces of the suffering heroines. And Steve McQueen, a guy with impressive talent who knows how to stage scenes that don’t fall into sterility and abounds in interesting style ideas, should make up his mind about what story he wants to tell. The film follows the structure of a heist movie that expands the knowledge of the audience about the actions of the characters, but it’s more interested in a closed psychological arc that is quite superficial and pushes aside many promising motifs (the weirdly (un)closed line of Colin Farrell, the black guy from the barbershop, and even the potential highlight of Liam Neeson). I loved the realistic nature of the action scenes that reminded me of Heat, I enjoyed the smoothly incorporated humour, and there’s hardly anything to complain about the performances, and yet Widows left me with the feeling of the squandered potential to be the strongest emancipation drama of the decade – it ends up as nothing but a poorly edited and too telegraphic showcase of technical sophistication and impressive directorial vision that will unfortunately be soon forgotten. 65%
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