Alice, Darling: stifling relationship full of violence, but without blows

Violence in relationships is – unfortunately – the order of the day and that subject is therefore not underexposed in the cinema. Starting tomorrow, Anna Kendrick can be seen in the film drama Alice, Darling. Kendrick is Alice, who has fallen into a stifling relationship. A relationship without physical violence, by the way, but the question almost arises: what is actually worse?

Both are very natural, no misunderstanding about that. But Alice, Darling at least shows what a relationship full of violence, but without blows, can do to a person. For real action you have to be in the cinemas from tomorrow with the fourth part of John Wick. Metro chose Alice, Darling, however, given the subject matter, as Movie Review of the Week.

At first glance, a fine couple in Alice, Darling

Actress and singer Anna Kendrick says she herself experienced a relationship that was anything but fun. In that respect, she could empathize with her character Alice. And well, that’s Kendrick in this movie. We see a woman who has it all together. Her friend Simon (Charlie Carrick), a lanky artist, also seems like a nice guy. When Alice has a drink with two friends, however, she has to send a photo of her cleavage. That is still possible, but when she returns home the only response she gets is ‘that it was only one photo’. Then you know there’s something wrong with that guy. But also with Alice, with good reason, because she regularly appears to flee into toilets when she hyperventilates and then literally pulls her hair out.

What follows is a weekend of friends with the same ladies as from the drink (Kaniehtiio Horn and Wunmi Mosaku). It should be one of those weekends in which topics such as orgasms in your sleep are discussed and where one of them celebrates her thirtieth birthday. The happy days are held in a fairly deserted nature reserve, where the search is on for the missing teenage girl Andrea. What this second storyline adds to Alice, Darling, has eluded Metro, to be honest. At most it delivers some tense moments of ‘would she be there?’ on.

Simple events, panic reactions

The real story is that stifling relationship that becomes clear in Alice, Darling in a good build. Because of the countless texts from Simon, for example, who turns out to be lied to by Alice about the weekend away (“darling, I miss you so much, can you come home earlier?”). But mainly because of Alice’s reactions to simple incidents like losing an apparently important earring. Panic: “I can’t do anything wrong now.” The two girlfriends know enough about that sentence and more of those kinds of statements that make you cold as a viewer. What the debuting director Mary Nighy has done well is the fact that you get relatively little of Simon in the picture. And yet he continuously plays in the background.

Good thing Alice, Darling was made

Alice, Darling is billed as ‘chilling drama’ on the poster. That may be a bit exaggerated, but the film is good. And that it was made at all is to be appreciated. That Alice persists in being happy and that she continues to defend her Simon towards the outside world, it will – unfortunately – be recognizable. What especially sticks is how many ways you can keep telling a ‘loved one’ that she is nothing at all. In absolutely everything that makes Alice, Darling sore. But how it all ends? Go and have a look, is the tip.

Rating out of 5: 3.5

Not a relaxed cinema trip, such a subject, but worth seeing.

You can read Metro’s movie review of the week every Wednesday around 6 p.m. New titles always appear in Dutch cinemas on Thursdays, such as Alice, Darling (sometimes also on Wednesdays). Reporter Erik Jonk chooses one every week. Next week: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. The famous game, but on the silver screen.