Ellie (Thomasin McKenzie) is a wide eyed, young woman attending fashion school in London where she rents a room from Miss Collins (Diana Rigg is her final role). Ellie has the ability to see visions of her deceased mom and later a mysterious singer, Sandy (Anya Taylor-Joy), from 50 years ago who dreams of being a singer only to descend into the seamy, dark side of the bar scene. At first Ellie forms a kinship with Sandy’s world until her dreams becoming more graphic and terrifying. Haunted by Sandy’s fate, she loses her grip on reality, and when things take a decidedly deadly tone, the shocking truth emerges from an unexpected source.
The two principal females are initially contrasts in appearance and personality until they parallel and begin to merge. There are repetitive, startling vignettes and red herrings, but the film’s narrative evolves into one big mystery that may or may not involve murder. What really happened to Sandy; is she real or is Ellie going mad?
As
usual, Wright has a sharp eye for stylized visuals and impeccable taste in
period music (Petula Clark sales of Downtown
should spike) and pop culture. The movie successfully recreate sixties’
London bursting with energy and tunes of the day permeated with nightmarish
scenes and threatening figures that echo Repulsion
and Jacob’s Ladder.
It’s
a film with a promising start that doesn’t quite stick its landing. Wright’s
talents deserve more substantive material.
Hopefully this is a warmup to bigger and better things in the future.
***
of **** stars (add ½* for Wright fans)
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