Review of The Beguiled (2017) by Lana C — 03 Jul 2017

Proper Perspective: One of the better character pieces of 2017, not a traditional horror movie or even that scary, which is refreshing and a positive in the middle of the CGI filled summer blockbuster season. Let's talk about The Beguiled (2017)...

Official Synopsis: At a girls' school in Virginia during the Civil War, where the young women have been sheltered from the outside world, a wounded Union soldier is taken in. Soon, the house is taken over with sexual tension, rivalries, and an unexpected turn of events.

Plot: A girls school with seven women trying to make it through the Civil War have their lives interrupted by an unwelcome house guest, who slowly envelopes himself into the lives of each.

Take: Let's start off with the acting. This is one of the best acted movies of the year, hands down. Nicole Kidman was great as Miss Martha, the head of the girl's school and one responsible for taking care of her students in the harshest of environments.

Kidman was able to portray the character as regal, strong, and at the same time vulnerable as anyone would be alone with seven other girls in the middle of a war.

Kirsten Dunst was also terrific as Edwina, the lone teacher at the school. She becomes wrapped up with the wounded soldier first, Corporal McBurney (Colin Farrell). Eventually all the girls become attached to the wounded soldier for their own reasons, taking to the mysterious guest. Alicia (Elle Fanning) is the oldest student and close to becoming a woman, grows an attraction towards the wounded soldier.

To me the best part of the movie was the performance of Amy (Oona Laurence), a young actress you have seen in movies like Southpaw and Pete's Dragon recently. She was the most innocent, kind, and logical of the group. Logic with a twist of naivety, which makes sense for a 12-14 year old.

There is a blend of suspense, humor, and drama in this movie that gets started right away. It does not overstay its welcome at 93 minutes and is one of the best Indie movies of the year.

Recommendation: While being a remake of a 1971 Clint Eastwood movie that I have never seen, this feels original and a good change of pace with nothing but large blockbusters coming out every week. Sure, you can wait until Redbox or go support good movies so we can get more in the future...

For a movie that is about strong, independent women, it is the worst case of the Bechdel Test ever. Like, fails in every way possible. Weird.