Promising Young Woman (Sky Cinema/NOW) Movie Review & Comments

Thought it was a great film and liked how it's not afraid to provoke Me and the wife were really annoyed when Ryan was in on the act after being tricked into the whole rom com vibe but I guess it calls out to the male audience and especially the young watchers that it's not ok to be a bystander and part of a pack when these sort of crimes against women occur. Alison Brie's character and the Principle are equally at fault and called out so I don't see how men can take issue.

I interpreted that Cassie may have orchestrated her death at the end especially with all the setups in place if she disappeared. Was one of the cuffs loose on purpose? Was she giving the guy a chance to prove he'd changed as she seemed to give the guys who took her home a few opportunities to stop the assaults?

The only negative is minor and that was Ryan calling her a failure. I thought that was off character.
Glad you made that last point as wasn't sure if it was just me. That line seemed noticeably off.
 
Also, how dumb was the (now infamous) review which said the role of Cassie seemed as if it could have been written for Margot Robbie? There's so many ways in which that's wrong.
 
I had to turn my subwoofer off. The sound was rubbish on sky I had to turn my AVR up full blast which then meant my sub was about to blow up.
Glad it wasn’t just me that noticed that. I thought the kids had been messing with the sub settings again and ended up turning it all the way down. My Mrs said she felt a rumble in her chest at one point 😂
 
Really enjoyed this, went a bit flat about two thirds of the way through but the ending more than made up for it!
 
I have not read that.
That seems like an especially ridiculous take.
One of those things that made a lot of headlines a while ago after Mulligan said it was essentially saying she 'wasn't hot enough' so I had an awareness of it going in.


What's so weird about that review - setting aside that it is a bit rude - is Cassie is clearly not a bombshell-type character. The film wouldn't have worked at all and several scenes made no sense if she had the obvious glamour of Robbie. It completely misses the mark both on the character and the kind of social dynamics at play.
 
I almost gave up on it 10 minutes or so into the film but I stuck with it and by the end I thought it was decent enough. Let down IMO by pacing issues and having a lot of style over substance, but worth watching and Carey Mulligan played the part well.
 
I agree with @Tom Davies . A challenging, powerful, incendiary, and provocative feature that not only doesn't pull its punches; it waits till you've recovered then sucker punches you again and kicks you hard when you're on the ground. As a man I did take it personally on an emotional level; and boy did it hurt when the lovely Ryan is revealed to have been a scumbag 10 years before. It was of course predictable that this was going to happen, and I hoped they wouldn't go there. But the movie doesn't give a solitary **** what I want, and that's one of the points. The director is taking no prisoners.

I watched it with the Mrs with the intention of talking it over with her, and it provoked a healthy discussion both during and after. I rolled my eyes a little when Cassie gets 'cat called' by the sexist builders; and again when she gets called a 'see-you-next-tuesday' for stopping on a highway. And of course, a film about sexism wouldn't be complete without the obligatory "she's asking for it" remark. These are cliches I thought; if I saw a woman slumped over her steering wheel my instinct would be to check she's ok. This is where the '#notallmen' in me began to stir. However its also where my partner's female perspective came in handy: these things have happened to her at some point. Cassie is a proxy for all women who have experienced these things at some stage- their experiences distilled into a single film. And it's really not interested in making sure decent men get showcased being decent.

On the subject of 'nice guys', I frequently watch some of r/niceguys videos pulled off of reddit; where absolute utter creeps try to convince women that they are somehow uniquely 'nice' among all the other dudes, and they are anything but. Never refer to yourself as a 'nice guy', its a massive red flag.

The film itself is well made, well directed and well acted especially by Mulligan and I agree with the comments saying she was appropriately cast. The scenes with Alison Brie and the college principal were highlights too; and as Tom says women don't get let off the hook in this film. Far from it. The movie is also funny, charming and quite heart-warming at times (before all that is cruelly ripped away later on) before ending on an unexpected note. In conclusion then, I feel like I have a black eye from watching this, but it was well worth it. Definitely a film to watch with a significant other and one that makes you think. 8/10 is fair.
 
Didn't really fancy this to be honest, however I will give it a look as I'm intrigued more than anything else now.
 
Didn't really fancy this to be honest, however I will give it a look as I'm intrigued more than anything else now.
It's definitely worth a look, but I got too caught up with the hype and was distinctly underwhelmed. As I said on an earlier post, Mulligan delivers a respectable performance, but she's capable of far better.
 
I didn’t think this put a foot wrong. A very modern thriller. Often uncomfortable viewing, particularly early on. Everyone on very good form, Mulligan obviously holds the whole thing together, although I’m not entirely sure she was awards worthy. Nicely shot and an excellent irreverent soundtrack.
Check it out, if you’re man enough.
8.5/10
 
One question I have, how did Cassie know the police would show up at the wedding? Did I miss something?
 
Enjoyed the film. Thought it was very well directed, both in tone and the overall control of the narrative. I'm not sure about the ending but won't go into that now.

I might be a bit controversial here but The Variety reviewer was mean spirited in his take on Mulligan but not entirely off base. I felt she was a few years too old, for the time-line of the film's story, where her character was meant to be just turned 30. Not quite convincing for me.

And as for the second of his controversial comments, the costume design for that last outfit, was a little bit "drag queen". That's not to say Mulligan is unattractive for anything like it but it was not particularly flattering.

That said, if you are a film reviewer with half a brain then you recognise the female-centric take of the film and making mean comments about the looks of the star is the last thing you'd contemplate doing, in 2021's climate certainly.
 
Enjoyed the film. Thought it was very well directed, both in tone and the overall control of the narrative. I'm not sure about the ending but won't go into that now.

I might be a bit controversial here but The Variety reviewer was mean spirited in his take on Mulligan but not entirely off base. I felt she was a few years too old, for the time-line of the film's story, where her character was meant to be just turned 30. Not quite convincing for me.

And as for the second of his controversial comments, the costume design for that last outfit, was a little bit "drag queen". That's not to say Mulligan is unattractive for anything like it but it was not particularly flattering.

That said, if you are a film reviewer with half a brain then you recognise the female-centric take of the film and making mean comments about the looks of the star is the last thing you'd contemplate doing, in 2021's climate certainly.
I really disagree here - even with my most brutal casting hat on and all concerns over being rude aside. A lot of this film actually relies on Cassie having a chameleon quality. She is unassuming and able to both fade into the background and attract attention at differing times. I think Mulligan can absolutely pull that off and the reactions of all the men in the film to her are convincing to me.

If you think about the reviewer's suggestion of Margot Robbie, that would make no sense. Someone who looks like that would be one of the most popular girls at college - all the jock douchebags would have for sure remembered her. She would also be noticed instantly whenever she went out to bars on her own and hassled non-stop. I don't think she would ever be able to do her pretend-to-be-drunk plan convincingly.

Cassie isn't written as a born femme fatale type. She seems more like an insecure person who kind of doubts anyone would be attracted to her in particular. She just thinks men are desperate, will try to latch onto anyone seen as vulnerable and can be easily manipulated with the promise of sex (and, well, is she that wrong?). I think that's why she is actually quite flattered when she comes to think Ryan really does like her.
 
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I really disagree here - even with my most brutal casting hat on and all concerns over being rude aside. A lot of this film actually relies on Cassie having a chameleon quality. She is unassuming and able to both fade into the background and attract attention at differing times. I think Mulligan can absolutely pull that off and the reactions of all the men in the film to her are convincing to me.

If you think about the reviewer's suggestion of Margot Robbie, that would make no sense. Someone who looks like that would be one of the most popular girls at college - all the jock douchebags would have for sure remembered her. She would also be noticed instantly whenever she went out to bars on her own and hassled non-stop. I don't think she would ever be able to do her pretend-to-be-drunk plan convincingly.

Cassie isn't written as a born femme fatale type. She seems more like an insecure person who kind of doubts anyone would be attracted to her in particular. She just thinks men are desperate, will try to latch onto anyone seen as vulnerable and can be easily manipulated with the promise of sex (and, well, is she that wrong?). I think that's why she is actually quite flattered when she comes to think Ryan really does like her.
I really like this take. I wasn't suggesting the reviewer was right about Margo Robbie, to be clear and you are right, all the blokes would gravitate to her at the bar. Personally thought Cassie's character felt a bit too old both for her situation and the chronology of the film, 6-7 years after grad school.

You are right about the vulnerability and the promise of sex manipulating men, this is a sad and truthful observation.
 
I really disagree here - even with my most brutal casting hat on and all concerns over being rude aside. A lot of this film actually relies on Cassie having a chameleon quality. She is unassuming and able to both fade into the background and attract attention at differing times. I think Mulligan can absolutely pull that off and the reactions of all the men in the film to her are convincing to me.

If you think about the reviewer's suggestion of Margot Robbie, that would make no sense. Someone who looks like that would be one of the most popular girls at college - all the jock douchebags would have for sure remembered her. She would also be noticed instantly whenever she went out to bars on her own and hassled non-stop. I don't think she would ever be able to do her pretend-to-be-drunk plan convincingly.

Cassie isn't written as a born femme fatale type. She seems more like an insecure person who kind of doubts anyone would be attracted to her in particular. She just thinks men are desperate, will try to latch onto anyone seen as vulnerable and can be easily manipulated with the promise of sex (and, well, is she that wrong?). I think that's why she is actually quite flattered when she comes to think Ryan really does like her.

That sums up along what I was thinking (although more eloquently put). Spot on.
 
I thought it was very good and posted my thoughts on the watching movies thread:


I disagree with Dennis Harvey’s observation of Mulligan in his review, in terms of I feel he might be missing the point in that this kind of rape scenario doesn’t just happen to the obviously pretty girls. It can happen to anyone.

As @FavouredAntelope said, I’m assuming Cassie was the quiet, brainy one at Med school that the boys didn’t notice.
 
One question I have, how did Cassie know the police would show up at the wedding? Did I miss something?

Didn‘t she send a dossier and cellphone (with rape video) to the defence lawyer (Alfred Molina) - stating where she’d gone, and in the event of her disappearance, send the phone/info to the police? So they’d find out how the past (regarding her best friend Nina’s involvement with Al Monroe) will be linked to her going to the stag do. Once her parents reported the disappearance, and the police got the notes and tape, then Al Monroe would become a suspect, hence the police tracking him down at the wedding (as he thought he’d gotten away with it).
 
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Didn‘t she send a dossier and cellphone (with rape video) to the defence lawyer (Alfred Molina) - stating where she’d gone, and in the event of her disappearance, send the phone/info to the police? So they’d find out how the past (regarding her best friend Nina’s involvement with Al Monroe) will be linked to her going to the stag do. Once her parents reported the disappearance, and the police got the notes and tape, then Al Monroe would become a suspect, hence the police tracking him down at the wedding (as he thought he’d gotten away with it).
Luckily she didn`t use MyHermes or the timing would have been way off :eek:

Very Very good film to watch 7a+/9
 
Didn‘t she send a dossier and cellphone (with rape video) to the defence lawyer (Alfred Molina) - stating where she’d gone, and in the event of her disappearance, send the phone/info to the police? So they’d find out how the past (regarding her best friend Nina’s involvement with Al Monroe) will be linked to her going to the stag do. Once her parents reported the disappearance, and the police got the notes and tape, then Al Monroe would become a suspect, hence the police tracking him down at the wedding (as he thought he’d gotten away with it).
Yes but that does that make it a given that they would show up at the actual wedding and not, say, a day or two either side? It all seemed very contrived to me.
 
Yes but that does that make it a given that they would show up at the actual wedding and not, say, a day or two either side? It all seemed very contrived to me.

Yeah, i’d put it down to Hollywood artistic license, and the part where you have to suspend a bit of disbelief to allow the conclusion to tie up in such a neat way.
 
Watched this on HBO Max last night and thought it was fantastic.

The first scene in the bar sent my alarm bells ringing a bit in terms of clichés, but it recovered quickly. I thought there would be more of a
Dexter-type
angle from what I remember of seeing on the trailer, but it was quite different.

Highly recommended and something a little different.

A very solid 8/10.
 
Yes but that does that make it a given that they would show up at the actual wedding and not, say, a day or two either side? It all seemed very contrived to me.
Plan 32b obviously went into action.
I liked the film, but the ending required her to fail in a quite specific way, things going wrong (or even right) in any other way would have ruined the end game.

So you end up with multiple contradictory plans based on different failure points.

Much like heist movies.
 

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