But how many Jocastas do you know?

Continuing my trip up The Guardian's Top 50 Films of 2021 

#47 : Last Night In Soho

Thomasin McKenzie, Anya Taylor-Joy and Matt Smith star in Edgar Wright’s horror-thriller that takes a trip to the sleazy heart of London’s past and toxic 60s glitz.

I like Edgar Wright - from the early days of Spaced, through Shaun Of The Dead (obviously) to, for me, his high point of Scott Pilgrim vs The World (controversial!).  Also somewhat controversially, I didn't particularly like Baby Driver - it had some fancy moves in it, but it had a load of nonsense in it as well.  I was intrigued about this one though - I wouldn't say I was desperate to watch it, but I was expecting a stylish display nonetheless.

And hmmm - five minutes in, I'm thinking it's going to be more a case of Edgar's love letter to 60s films than a film I actually want to watch.  Thomasin McKenzie's Ellie is a fashion student who has come up from Redruth to study in the bright lights of London and let's just say the natives aren't particularly friendly.  It's all very stylish though and there's just enough intrigue to keep my attention - you can tell something is going to happen but you'd never guess it unless you already knew, because suddenly she's in 60s London and sharing her life with Anya Taylor-Joy's Sandy.  You'd have to say it's very well done - both with the sets and the clever way that two characters inhabit the same space whereby any reflective surface shows the other character (which sounds like it must have been a lot of work but when you see it, you'll realise it was a lot more work than that).

From that point on, it probably won't surprise you to hear that the two worlds become somewhat intertwined and Ellie finds herself in a bit of a pickle - it probably wouldn't make for such interesting viewing if that wasn't the case though.  However, the intertwination (that's a word right?) either happens too soon or the film is too long - the second half of the film doesn't progress as much as much as the first half (which is always the wrong way to go around such things).  There's a bit too much running after or away from people for no obvious reason - always stylish, but unfortunately also always pointless.  It does manage to land more of an ending than I was expecting though - I wasn't 100% convinced by it, but it was better than I was expecting 75% of the way through!  Losing half an hour from the running time really wouldn't have hurt matters though.

It's a fine cast - Thomasin McKenzie is impressively wide-eyed and naive whilst Anya Taylor-Joy is somewhat more worldly-wise but is still out of her depth compared to Matt Smith's nasty piece of work (he's an interesting actor, isn't he?).  And Terence Stamp and Diana Rigg are in it as well - can't fault those two for class (this was Diana's last film and is poignantly dedicated to her right at the beginning).  And it's all rounded off with Rita Tushingham as Ellie's gran and Pauline McLynn (Father Ted's Mrs Doyle) as a pub landlady - who can argue with that?

It's a different film from most of Mr Wright's oeuvre but certainly shows that he has an interesting eye and a dazzling sense of style.  He's also certainly gone some ways to address some of the criticisms that have been levelled at him regarding his one-dimensional treatment of female characters (which strangely wasn't really the case for Spaced, where the female characters were generally the stronger presence).

One further point to note that this is another film that uses the c word - twice!  It's a potty-mouthed list so far - but I'd have to say I don't think Edgar quite got away with in the way that Emerald did.

So - did I enjoy it?  Hmmm - tricky one.  I'm glad I watched it and there is a fine amount of skill on display, but I don't think I'd have bothered watching it without being made to by the list and, having seen it, I don't feel that I've been saved from making a big mistake.  It's all a bit too reverential and a bit too referential for my liking but, having said that, it's certainly very well done and there is a great deal of acting and film-making craft to admire.  A film of interest rather than one to be loved for me, but I can see it will have its fans.  The final word goes to my eldest who pronounced "this film isn't nearly as good as it thinks it is" which strikes me as a slightly harsh but pretty fair comment.

At time of writing, the film is available to rent from the usual locations for £16 - or to buy for £11.  Is that how things are supposed to work?!?

#48 - Watch this space!
#46 - An unsettling (and often unpleasant) experience