Widows is a confronting, violent, desperate film, but one that ticks the most important box of all: being thoroughly entertaining.
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Heist movies have a dark undercurrent, and Widows – directed by Oscar-winning Steve McQueen of 12 Years a Slave fame – proves to be no different. But that’s probably where all the similarities end, in the best way possible. Widows is a confronting, violent, desperate film, but one that ticks the most important box of all: being thoroughly entertaining.
Adapted from a British TV show that ran in the 1980s, Widows was filmed in close collaboration with Gone Girl writer Gillian Flynn. The film is set in Chicago and features four women who plot and pull off a robbery after their husbands are killed attempting another job. There are thieves, politicians and wicked men all around, but it’s mostly about the women, really – the system is stacked against them, and the only way out is to take justice into their own hands.
The excellent cast is headed by Viola Davis and also includes Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debicki, Liam Neeson and Robert Duvall. Davis plays Veronica, an upper-class woman whose life is thrown into disarray when her husband (Neeson) is murdered along with three colleagues pulling off an armed robbery. Debicki delivers a powerful performance as a woman empowered to gain strength in the wake of disappointing family circumstances, and Rodriguez rounds out the team with her grounded act.
There’s enough in Widows to easily fill a 10-episode Netflix series, but it is this richness of potential that makes the two-hour film so enjoyable. The plotlines come together satisfyingly, accompanied by believable twists and emotional payoffs. Of course, not everything is fully resolved, but while the screentime speeds by quickly, wanting a bit more rather than a lot less is a small offence in what might just be the most exciting heist film this year. The only catch is that it’s rated M18.
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