“It’s every guy’s worst nightmare getting accused like that”
“Can you guess what every woman’s worst nightmare is?”
Promising Young Woman is a 2020 black comedy thriller film starting Carey Mulligan and directed by Emerald Fennell (Camilla in The Crown) in her feature directorial debut. This film follows Cassie Thomas (Mulligan), a 30-year-old med school dropout who still lives with her parents following the death of her best friend. We find out that Nina, Cassie’s best friend, was raped at med school and both the school and legal system did absolutely nothing about it. Due to this experience, Cassie spends her nights pretending to be drunk at bars, letting men take her home, and then reveals herself to be sober as they are about to take advantage of her. What follows is an unforgettable story that will shake you to the core.
Not only is this movie extremely well done, but it is also incredibly timely. Following the murder of Sarah Everard earlier this month (if you don’t know, Sarah Everard was walking home in London when she was kidnapped and murdered by a Metropolitan police officer), there have been a lot more discussions of sexual harassment and assault, specifically towards young women. The new statistic going around after this case is that 97 percent of young women have been sexually harassed in their lifetime. Initially, that may seem impossible but unfortunately, it’s not. Every woman in my life that I have talked to about this has admitted that they are part of that 97 percent, myself included. This movie highlights the fact that sexual harassment and assault are a lot more casual than we would like to admit.
Without giving anything away, Promising Young Woman continues with Cassie confronting those who didn’t do anything to help Nina in the past, with no limits to what she will do to get an apology. The third act of the movie is really where it takes the unexpected turn and I won’t say anything more as it is much better when it’s a surprise. It’s hard to trust anyone in the movie, and it’s extremely upsetting to watch how many men are attempting to take advantage of an intoxicated woman.
Even if you normally aren’t into thrillers (they normally aren’t my thing) I cannot stress how important I think this movie is. Also, besides being important, it’s just a genuinely good movie. It has gained a lot of positive critical response, including an Oscar nomination for both Carey Mulligan (Best Actress) and Emerald Fennel, one of two women nominated for Best Director this year (only the sixth and seventh women ever to be nominated). The aesthetic of the movie is very whimsical as Cassie is always wearing pink, works at a retro looking coffee shop, and pop music dominates the soundtrack. It short, it’s a tough message in a pretty picture. So, check out Promising Young Woman as soon as you have the chance.
HCXO,
Maeve