Promising Young Woman (2020)

Director: Emerald Fennell
Stars: Carey Mulligan, Bo Burnham, Alison Brie
Runtime: 113 minutes

Synopsis: A young woman, traumatized by a tragic event in her past, seeks out vengeance against those who crossed her path.

Verdict: "Promising Young Woman" has been gathering quite a bit of praise ever since it debuted in theaters a few weeks ago. I'll be honest, I knew nothing about it back then and decided to avoid watching any trailers or reading any synopsis since the poster alone had me sold. I wanted to go in completely blind, and somehow managed to do so despite having to wait for its VOD release as lockdown is still very much in effect where I reside.

The film's opening scene was promising indeed. It was a stylish, energetic, and colorful way to introduce us to our protagonist, played by a fantastic Carey Mulligan. Cassandra is a young woman whose turbulent past has led her to a life mostly dedicated to taking action against despicable men who like to take advantage of vulnerable women to satisfy their disgusting needs. Her introduction as a badass vigilante operating on the backdrop of a dynamic atmosphere had me excited for what was coming next in Emerald Fennell's directorial debut, but its failure to keep up with that direction quickly turned the watch into a frustrating one instead.

While still benefiting from Mulligan's performance and a couple of similar scenes here and there, the movie saw an overall major step back from its initial promise. Suffering from considerable tonal inconsistencies, it turns into an aimless mess that never properly approaches its delicate central theme. Instead, it chooses to rely on cringe-worthy conveniences and poorly written dialogue to pull the narrative forward, making the watch one that I mostly found to be... boring.

If you're looking for an entertaining and badass movie in which the protagonist hunts down the men that wronged her, I'd recommend watching Coralie Fargeat's "Revenge" instead. And if you're looking for a film that dissects the unfair treatment that women have to go through in the aftermath of a traumatic harassment affair, I'd suggest checking out Kaouther Ben Hania's "Beauty and the Dogs". "Promising Young Woman" attempts to combine the two movies into one, and it never quite takes off.

FINAL GRADE: 4/10