Movie #1596 ........................."Widows" (2018)

Movie #1596 "Widows" was not a movie I would necessarily seek out, but the script was written by Steve McQueen (12 years a slave) and Gillian Flynn (Gone Girl), and the cast had Viola Davis, and many other prominent african american actors that I knew would make the acting parts shine in this film, and besides the other three people I was going to the theatre wanted to see it so that's the movie I saw today.  I found it violent (but I knew it would be considering the subject matter), very well acted, dark with very few colors and 1 person smiling through the entire film, and a script that needed more work --- there were scenes that weren't really needed and whole characters were introduced and couldn't figure out a big reason why they were introduced (Like Lucas Haas) -- there are lots of why questions when it's over and I just found it weak, except for Viola Davis' performance.   Bottom line is that I really didn't like anyone in the film, and I left feeling very depressed about how our politics might be running.  Everything is done under the table and both sides of this election is in it for the money and power --- very little integrity shown at all.  Father swears at son, son swears at father.  Betrayal.  Murder.  There's intrigue but if you don't care about the people in it, who cares?  I never felt emotionally pulled in.  I do recognize that there are worthwhile reasons behind some scenes; for example, a white cop shooting a black driver in a car who doesn't comply right away to what he is saying, how middle and lower class people with very little money can't seem to open a business like a beauty shop in the neighborhood without getting help from the mob, female empowerment is strong here and several times you notice that these women get away with stuff because no one believes they could pull it off --- with these scenes, the film has worthwhile things to say about our society, and that makes it more worthwhile for us to see.  However, it is a heist film and I like he ones where the audience is in on most of the plan so we can see it wittily play out, and that's missing here --- I also prefer heist films that when they are done, you can look back and say:  Wow, that took a lot of thinking through and it was very creative --- it showed skill.  I felt neither in this film.  I would give it 3 out of 5.

Widows (2018)

R | 2h 9min | Crime , Drama , Romance | 16 November 2018 (USA)

Set in contemporary Chicago, amid a time of turmoil, four women with nothing in common except a debt left behind by their dead husbands' criminal activities, take fate into their own hands, and conspire to forge a future on their own terms.

Director:

 Steve McQueen

Writers:

 Gillian Flynn (screenplay by), Steve McQueen(screenplay by)  | 1 more credit »

Stars:

 Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debicki