Director: Edgar Wright
Starring: Thomasin McKenzie, Anya Taylor-Joy, Matt Smith, Terence Stamp, Diana Rigg
Running Time: 116 minutes
Synopsis: Mild-mannered Ellie (Thomasin McKenzie) was raised by her grandmother to love 1960s music and culture, and now moves to London to pursue a fashion design education. She rents a room from the kindly Ms Collins (Diana Rigg) in the SoHo neighbourhood, and starts experiencing visions of the vivacious Sandie (Anya Taylor-Joy), who arrived in 1960s London seeking fame as a singer. Sandie is spotted by talent agent Jack (Matt Smith), who appears helpful but has vile intentions. Ellie is initially inspired and exhilarated by her visions, but when Sandie's story turns dark, Ellie's life becomes a nightmare.
What Works Well: In this mind-bending and genre-melding delight, director and co-writer Edgar Wright explores themes of loneliness and fitting-in while simultaneously saluting and persecuting the Swinging Sixties. After a careful introduction to Ellie's ambitions, character, and mental state, Sandie enters the picture with a bang, Anya Taylor-Joy luxuriating in a fearless role. London of the mid-1960s is recreated with loving affection boosted by a terrific soundtrack, inventive cinematography, and clever use of mirrors. But the defining fashions and nightclub pizzazz also hide an exploitive culture feeding on vulnerable young women. A devious across-the-decades crime mystery draws Ellie into danger beyond just nightmares triggered by the past.
What Does Not Work As Well: The horror sequences featuring ghost-like beings lean towards excess and diminish the more effective psychological suspense milieu.
Key Quote:
Ellie: Has a woman ever died in my room?
Ms Collins: This is London. Someone has died in every room in every building and on every street corner in the city.
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