Director: Tate Taylor
Starring: Allison Janney, Mila Kunis, Regina Hall, Juliette Lewis, Ellen Barkin, Matthew Modine, Awkwafina
Starring: Allison Janney, Mila Kunis, Regina Hall, Juliette Lewis, Ellen Barkin, Matthew Modine, Awkwafina
Running Time: 96 minutes
Synopsis: In Kentucky, timid Sue Buttons (Allison Janney) is married to banker Karl (Matthew Modine), who is not only ignoring her and having an affair, but also laundering money for a local mobster. Sue is impressed by television personality Gloria Michaels (Juliette Lewis), who is covering the story of a missing teenager. When Karl drops dead, Sue senses an opportunity to finally get the world to notice her: she secretly buries Karl and reports him missing. Soon she is basking in the media spotlight as the distraught wife, but also attracting the attention of Karl's criminal associates and police detective Harris (Regina Hall).
Synopsis: In Kentucky, timid Sue Buttons (Allison Janney) is married to banker Karl (Matthew Modine), who is not only ignoring her and having an affair, but also laundering money for a local mobster. Sue is impressed by television personality Gloria Michaels (Juliette Lewis), who is covering the story of a missing teenager. When Karl drops dead, Sue senses an opportunity to finally get the world to notice her: she secretly buries Karl and reports him missing. Soon she is basking in the media spotlight as the distraught wife, but also attracting the attention of Karl's criminal associates and police detective Harris (Regina Hall).
What Works Well: In a breezy opening act, Sue is introduced as drifting through life with an unwanted cloak of invisibility, her birthday forgotten by all including her half-sister (Mila Kunis). Hubby Karl's mid-thrust death is funny.
What Does Not Work As Well: The rest of the movie flounders into unoriginal silliness derived from To Die For and the Coens, but with neither zest nor wit. The clutter of secondary characters (including a couple of goons and their boss, Karl's lover, ex-con brother, the brother's ditzy boss, her lover, detective Harris, and her partner) stumble over each other, some carrying unearned attitudes but all of them lacking substance. Recognizing the congested narrative dead-end, writer Amanda Idoko rushes into a mad killing spree, chasing the misguided notion that every additional murder relieves the burden of coherence.
Key Quote:
Detective Harris: Mrs. Buttons, usually in a missing persons case, people call the police before calling the media.
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