4/5

Eileen is the story of an isolated young woman in 1960s America, known to everyone in her small town but seen by no one. She wears her dead mother’s clothes, lives with her unstable alcoholic ex-cop father, and works in a prison. Eileen is burning up with sexual frustration in a physically and mentally cold landscape. Her dull existence is turned upside down by the arrival of a glamorous counsellor at the prison, Rebecca, played by Anne Hathaway. Rebecca is her opposite – charismatic, forthright, brashly beautiful, a leader not a follower. They are drawn into a prisoner’s case and things spiral dangerously out of control.

Eileen is an eerie film about an eerie girl, an outsider in a jaded, stale, nicotine-stained world. She’s drawn like a moth to the flame by the audacious Rebecca. It’s tense and dark, with flashes of humour and violence. Thomasin McKenzie as Eileen is compelling to watch. There is an enjoyable instability to the characters and a story that keeps you guessing about the film’s direction. Ultimately, I wanted more from the interplay between the two main characters. Their dark romance could have been darker. The crescendo – with a notable performance by Marin Ireland – is powerful, but it’s almost like the film doesn’t know what to do with its lead actor after that. Nevertheless, I really enjoyed this film, particularly for its strong female characters, and it’s well worth watching.

Directed by: William Oldroyd

Written by: Ottessa Moshfegh and Luke Goebel

Cast: Thomasin McKenzie, Anne Hathaway, Shea Whigham, Marin Ireland, Owen Teague

Universal Pictures

Duration 97 mins