Promising Young Woman

I'm flabbergasted that I'm only discovering this movie 3 years after it came out. I love every single actress and actor in this movie, and I'm shocked it wasn't a book made into a movie, it was so good and full of character depth. The plot centred around revenge was a very appealing bonus. All that said, the movie had a lot to live up to and IT. DID. It blew me away, and I would watch it again immediately except it left me feeling both sick and empty inside because there is just so much truth to the society we live in. The plot twists were almost too easy to see.... why? Because.... men. I actually don't hate men, I don't want to. But here I am bawling about men anyway. Now to feel better, I'll need to watch an uplifting fictional movie with men as the heroes; shouldn't be hard to find. Also, the soundtrack was wonderful. Thank you for this masterpiece.

"I'm a nice guy." "Are you?"

Carrie Mulligan is, as always, fantastic, and I love how 'Promising Young Woman' mixed in some elements of comedy and even romance into what was such a searing indictment of rape culture. For a film making such a strong statement, it's layered and intelligent, bringing out emotional aspects not usually present in revenge-type films. Instead of indulging in the bloodlust of a killing spree, it has her character trying to make others feel something - what it's like to be deceived, frightened, vulnerable, exploited, humiliated, or scarred for life.

The film goes after not just the bros who believe themselves to be nice guys and offer pathetic excuses for their behavior, but also the power structure protecting them, and it does so in a stylish way (that soundtrack!). The conversation with the dean of the medical school who looked the other way because she didn't want to """ruin a young man's life""" was particularly devastating, and yet isn't that what happens all the time? The film plays out in unexpected ways which is a part of its strength, and I was impressed that it threaded the needle between being depressing and uplifting. It felt emblematic of the era, and powerful.

At first I wasn't quite sure where this movie was going, even after reading the plot line on IMDB. There were so many directions this could have gone from the exaggerated cartoon like portrayal to the mundane, but if you got the feeling the lack of predictability was going to be what kept you around, you'd have been right.

First off, Carrie Mulligan has become one of those actors that doesn't seem to do bad movies, so when you see she's in a film, you count on it being good. She is a tour de force in this film. From start to finish, she displays such human qualities on an almost unconsciously precise level. You can see her as a caring person, loving person and hurt person, but also as a sociopath and someone so dangerously close to the edge you're not entirely confident she won't or hasn't already gone over it or how far she'll end up going if she does.

That's the beauty of this film, is it keeps you guessing. It's not impossible to see some of the twists it takes, you will likely say once or twice that you saw whatever happens coming, but that's much like life itself, no one existence is totally unpredictable or predictable. This is also what makes this so good as well, the relatability of something most viewers have never been through. This movie tells the story without giving away the entire story until it's time for the viewer to know, a very powerful tool. Warning, there are some fairly graphic parts, some drawn out parts of the gruesome details of the story, but they appear at the climax of the story and serve to punctuate a point rather than try and glorify something grotesque.

There were a couple of small things that did suffer from some exaggeration. The boss at the coffee shop interrogating the boyfriend was a bit overdone, as was the conversation between Casie and Madison (the second one), but with the coffee shop boss you would assume it's because they care and the Madison conversation because they just want to move on from it. Either way, small details in an otherwise great movie.

A good cast of characters playing a wide display of not so great people in an amazing movie. For some reason I also enjoyed it being set in Ohio. Made it seem more human. The way it was filmed focused very heavily on the story, rather than the background, but having Ohio as the backdrop deglamorized it and made it human.

Great flick. Check it out.

Cass plays the part of the drunken, incapacitated party girl very, she seems to have one mission, stopping men that would take advantage of the situation, however she has one singular mission, revenge.

This is a terrific story of revenge and consent. It's one of the best films I have seen for some time, no wonder it received to much praise, and so many nominations.

I wonder if they'd thought about making this a slasher movie at any point, vibes of Killing Eve and I spit on your grave, without the gore. Twist after twist, it will keep you on the edge of your seat.

This is one of those films that should be shown to teenagers, and young adults. It shows one thing, not all predators are alike, and they'll always have people who facilitate their behaviour. It also aims to show exactly what is meant by consent.

You'll reach a point in the movie where you'll think it's over, but it isn't, there's another huge twist coming your way, I didn't see it coming.

The one question this raises, is Cass a bad guy or not, it led to a really interesting conversation among my friends, all sorts of opinions.

Oscar nominated for her role, Carey Milligan is fantastic, I've seen her in some great parts, but this must rank as one of her best, her character's development, and sudden shifts in behaviour are extraordinary.

Bo Burnham is excellent in support, he is so good as Cass's distraction, the supporting cast are on point.

Great movie.

9/10.

Many of the modern vengeance films are brutal and gory; many boasts incredible fight sequences and stunts. 'Promising Young Woman' has neither of these traits. In fact, this is such a different vengeance movie, it is refreshingly original. I suppose in a way once could refer to it as psychological vengeance.

Carey Mulligan delivers a fantastic performance as Cassandra, the titular Promising Young Woman. Every week she goes to a club and pretend to be too drunk to stand. Every time a 'nice guy' picks her up, and is ready to take advantage of a drunk woman. Then, at the most awkward moment, these 'nice guys' then find out the girl is not drunk - and she rightfully puts them in their place. The film also serves as a warning to guys who take advantage of drunk women. (Hell, are straight guys really such douce bags???)

Seven years ago, Cassandra and her best friend Nina dropped out of med school after a tragic incident. She now works in a coffee shop whilst planning her revenge on the perpetrators. The film takes its time telling us exactly what happened to Nina, and I found this very effective. I enjoyed this mystery element. The entire time I was aware something terrible happened but didn't know what until it was revealed. I rather liked this approach.

The love interest comes in the form of pediatrician Ryan (Bo Burnham), who went to med school with Cassandra. Its not your average romance story, and I enjoyed this approach, too. 'Promising Young Woman' is not really a fast-paced movie, but its not slow either - and I was captivated all the way.

There are many twists and turns and events I never saw coming. The film does not have the ending I was hoping for, but I'm not going to do spoilers. Let's just say this is a very good and very realistic vengeance movie with a great script, and it most certainly is unpredictable! I do believe women will relate more to the film than men, but either way, this was an entertaining watch. The film also highlighted issues that might make you ponder on afterwards.