Promising Young Woman

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
Starring: Carrie Mulligan, Bo Burnham, Chris Lowell, Alison Brie
Where to watch: It is a 2020 release, available on multiple platforms
To watch or not to watch: It is a decent movie. Can definite watch over the weekend with girlfriends

Cassie (Carrie Mulligan) is a 30 year old medical college drop-out, working at a cafe, living with her parents (but her mother is Jennifer Coolidge, so it is understandable). She has almost no friends, limited hobbies and generally wants little to do with the world, unless it is night and she is out to a pub, dressed very differently from what you see her wearing during the day. She has a very good idea about what she is doing – pretending to be drunk until a guy tries to take advantage of her in that state and she then gives them something they are not likely to forget for a long time – hopefully think twice about assaulting anyone. So her life goes, until she runs into Ryan (Bo Burnham) at the coffee shop, who used to be her classmate. He hints at the unfortunate incident involving their classmate, and Cassie’s best friend Nina, who was gang r*p*d at a party by Al (Chris Lowell) and friends, which led her to quit school, and Cassie follows to take care of her. Cassie is reminded of the time and resolves to avenge Nina. She targets the people who were directly/indirectly responsible for the incident and the subsequent acquital of Al, et. al. And all this is a fun ride to take with Cassie. She is a bada**.

The Emerald Fennell debut would classify her as a Promising Young Woman (a very good joke, right?) untill she gets possessed by something inexplicable. Well, at least she is experimenting. That aside, this is a good movie. There are plot holes, plot armours, etc, but still it makes for a satisfying watch. More importantly, it deals with a very important topic, which is assault on women, and still people find it difficult to believe someone they have always considered as affable man is capable of something barbaric. Or simply that it is easier to disbelieve women than challenge their own perceptions. And that it is easier to side with men who are potential predators than with a victim. All of this is quite nihilistic, but an unfortunate reality. This movie tries to bring things to the fore, how some men who can be charming and seemingly harmless approach women, and the possiblity that they might not see women as people, as human, but only a means to an end.

Ok, too bleak.
The movie is a semi-cathartic revenge flick, where the reasons might be questionable, but no less believable. There are plot-holes as mentioned earlier, and do add confusion to what is happening and maybe lead to inconsistent storytelling, and it is inconsistent to be fair, but it is effective and doesn’t take away from the overall storyline. Carrie Mulligan embodied the role of Cassie, and is totally believable as someone grieving and vengeful. Bo Burnham’s character is loveable it is heart-warming to see the relationship with Carrie’s character flourish.
The movie delivers a powerful message, with a slight playful tone to it, with the varying degrees of acceptance or denial seen in the society and it is infuriating to watch it from a third person perspective. It explains how devastating such an act can be to the victim and how disengaged others can be. It also shows a sliver of humantiy when someone deals with guilt. It is good movie, not a great one, but a decently good one. Watch it with girlfriends and have a topic to discuss deeply.