The #MeToo movement took the world by storm in 2017, with predatory behaviour and the culture of toxic masculinity within the Hollywood community being taken to task by the women who had long suffered from it. Many more women have come forward in the years since to tell their own horrifying stories, putting the world on notice that this kind of behaviour simply won’t be tolerated any longer. That’s a message that Carey Mulligan’s character Cassie has well and truly taken to heart in Emerald Fennell’s incendiary directorial debut Promising Young Woman, an incredibly dark and biting comedy thriller about one woman’s quest for revenge against the entire concept of toxic masculinity. Its no-holds-barred approach to the social commentary at its core may come at the cost of building an empathetic lead character at times, but a career-best performance from Mulligan, highly stylised presentation and some of the most brutal on-screen violence of 2020 each make this a film you can’t ignore.
The titular woman at the centre of the story is Cassie (Mulligan), a med-school drop-out whose life was irreversibly changed by the death of her childhood best friend Nina. As a result of the stomach-churning circumstances surrounding Nina’s death (I’ll avoid specifics due to spoilers) Cassie has taken it upon herself to launch a one-woman crusade for revenge on Nina’s behalf. Every week she visits clubs and bars, pretending to be paralytically drunk in order to draw in scumbags from far and wide, teaching them a lesson they will never forget as they inevitably attempt to get in her pants only to realise she is stone-cold sober and has caught them in the act of attempted sexual assault. Yeah, it’s a pretty hardcore plan. On the advice of her parents (Clancy Brown and Jennifer Coolidge), Cassie attempts to soften her stance on men and re-integrate herself into everyday life, slowly falling for old college friend Ryan (Bo Burnham). When she runs into Madison (Alison Brie) however, another old friend from college, Cassie uncovers secrets from her past that shake her to her core and force her to make some hard decisions about whether to keep on the path of revenge she had committed herself to.
What makes Emerald Fennell’s film so unique is the tone. Almost intentionally awkward at times, the film’s vacillates between humour and seriousness seemingly on a whim. We are laughing at the ridiculousness of some of these men Cassie is stalking – caricatures of a far more sinister real-world equivalent – as they rant stupidly through inconsequential conversations with colleagues in clubs, only to have that laughter come to a grinding halt when you realise what these men intend to do to a seemingly helpless girl. It’s a jarring switch, but one that lends itself to the theme at play here: not all men are inherently evil, but that potential is lurking there under the surface for those morally bankrupt few who need only an opportunity to present itself for them to take advantage of a situation. That zig-zag between comedy and thriller is aided by Fennell’s almost over-the-top style. The film is filled with close-up shots of both men and women, shot to look as though they are being seen through the eyes of the opposite gender. Shots of female breasts and lips contrasted against fat, sweaty white businessmen tearing up the dance-floor is an equally funny and horrifying visual representation of that predatory behaviour Cassie aims to stamp out. Yet this even-handed juggling of two genres unfortunately does not always extend to Cassie herself.
Mulligan’s character takes a bit of warming-up to get used to. Initially extremely cold and snarky (think something of a female Patrick Bateman), Cassie’s crusade is presented as essentially the entire driving force behind her existence. The trauma from her past has permeated every facet of her life and has halted any plans for normalcy, an emotional spectrum Mulligan brings to life brilliantly, moving between vulnerable, helpless drunk to fully aware alpha within seconds to chilling effect. When alone in her room, that mask of confidence slips away to reveal a truly broken woman underneath, a girl who has lost faith in humanity. Things look to change with the introduction of Bo Burnham’s Ryan – played to witty perfection by the young comic – a perfect gentleman it seems, whose occasional minor stumbles early in their courtship Cassie is determined to look past. The montage of Cassie and Ryan’s burgeoning relationship is a highlight of the film, the first (and unfortunately only) glimpse at something in Cassie other than rage and a lust for vengeance, set to the bubblegum pop of Paris Hilton’s “Stars are Blind”.
At a certain point in the film Fennell makes a decision to shed this character development completely, doubling down on Cassie’s commitment to her cause and driving the final nail into the coffin of toxic masculinity. It’s a strong, jarring decision that some audiences may not like – I’m still coming to terms with it myself – and one that leans into the darkness of the subject matter, presenting a scene so shockingly violent and raw that I had to turn away a few times. While the ending does have a fun tongue-in-cheek, wink at the camera quality to it, you’re left with something of a hollow experience after having invested so much time into a character that really doesn’t develop much from where she first started. Mulligan’s performance goes a long way to making that lack of development not seem so obvious. She is clearly relishing playing a role so diabolical and psychotic, and it is hard not to get wrapped up in that and enjoy the ride in the moment. As a symbol for the #MeToo movement, Cassie will go down in the ages as the filmic representation of women fighting back against the patriarchy, taking a stand against a corrupt system that has long kept them down. The costume design and visual presentation in the climactic scene alone are a striking and pointed message at the scumbags of the world: your time is up.
Promising Young Woman is the perfect response to the social change of the last few years; a scathing, biting send-up of all the worst parts of toxic masculinity led by a tour de force performance from Carey Mulligan as a woman a scumbag wouldn’t want to meet late at night in a dark alley. It wears its social commentary on its sleeve, sometimes to its character’s detriment, but there can be no denying the impact the film leaves you with, an unsettling feeling of disgust, but worse a recognition that this type of behaviour does happen in the world. Emerald Fennell comes out of the gate swinging and while it may not be a movie you will want to revisit often, with its heavy themes and bone-crunching violence, Promising Young Woman isn’t one you will forget in a hurry. Parts of it I don’t think I ever will.
Promising Young Woman stars Carey Mulligan, Bo Burnham, Alison Brie, Clancy Brown, Jennifer Coolidge, Molly Shannon, Laverne Cox, Connie Britton, Adam Brody, Sam Richardson, Christopher Mintz-Plasse & Christopher Lowell – In cinemas now.