"Promising Young Woman" Review: The Heavy Handed Gut Punch We Should
Writer/director/producer Emerald Fennell penned “Promising Young Woman” in 2017 during the height of the Me Too Movement. The film is quirky, a little rough around the edges, but focused like its heroine. Its heavy handed with lesson after lesson but it’s a gut punch that men and everyone else should take heed to.
Carey Mulligan is Cassandra Thomas, a med school dropout with a chip on her shoulder. We’re first introduced to her alone, seemingly drunk, and preyed on by a few men in a club. After being taken home by one of the men, she allows him to get far enough to see that he would take advantage of a young woman who, while drunk, clearly said no. She then makes it clear to him that she’s not drunk. We don’t really know what happens after, but that’s the set up for the film.
We’re introduced to Cassandra’s world. She lives at home with her parents, works at a coffee shop, and keeps a running tab of the men she’s taught a lesson too in a small notebook. The sexual assault of her best friend in med school has radicalized her because while everyone seemed to move on from the incident, her brain has been seared by it. Cassandra uses Roman numerals to count each man she’s educated in her notebook and the film uses the Roman numeral theme to set up the various lessons she’ll teach to those who played a particular role in her past trauma over the course of it.
This is a movie where you’re better suited going in with a blank slate. So that’s all I’ll state about its plot. However, this is a film that addresses the issues of the culture behind sexual assault allegations, the victims, the accused, and the community of people that cover it up. As Cassandra implements her plan we’re forced to think about her message as well.
Mulligan really carries the film with her performance. There is a layering of her character that is noteworthy. You can see Cassandra’s brilliance, hard exterior, and wounded soul simultaneously in moments during the film. Alison Brie and Connie Britton also provide brief, but grounded performances as well. Unfortunately, the male actors in this film are mostly hollow, perhaps by design, serving as pieces that move the story forward. Many are portrayed as fragile when confronted by Cassandra, breaking down into scared little boys. Perhaps that’s Fennell’s intent? Yet it feels more like a subjective judgement of men, rather than allowing them to be three-dimensional. If it had been, the film as a whole would be elevated, rather than Mulligan elevating the film herself.
Regardless, Fennell’s points are direct and on target. The hypocrisy, double standards, and depravity of harassment and assault are on full display. Flaws aside, “Promising Young Woman” speaks for those who have and haven’t spoken their truth on the subject. While it is entertaining to watch, we should all listen to its message!
Rating: B
