Movie Reaction: The Beguiled

Formula: The English Patient * The Witch

I'm going to pitch a movie to you. It's about a Union soldier during the Civil War fighting in the South. He is wounded on the battlefield and flees to the woods rather than die in battle. In the woods, he is found by a young girl who brings him back to her school, filled only with women. The handful of women remaining in this school all vie for the handsome soldier's attention. They have fancy dinners for him and dress in their nicest clothes. They even let him stay around a while after his injuries heal despite it putting them at great risk if the local Confederate soldiers find out. Things eventually get out of control and he tries to take charge of his situation.

What I've just laid out is more or less how I'd describe The Beguiled, but it misses the point. The key is that the Union soldier isn't the subject of the film, he's the object of it. Everything does revolve around him, but it's not his story. A friend of mine joked that despite a 7:1 female to male ratio, this film manages to fail the Bechdel Test, which just serves as a reminder that the Bechdel Test is a shorthand, not a definitive measure. Think of it in the reverse. If there's a movie about two guys who like the same girl and spend the entire film competing for her, that film is still about the two friends, not the girl. That's what's going on in The Beguiled. It's a film about how all these women respond to this new stimulus in their isolated environment. In this case, the stimulus is a good-looking soldier played by Collin Farrell.

This is a stellar cast. Farrell plays a charming chameleon. It's clear early on that he's a sort of con-man, although not one outright. He changes how he acts around the different women. We aren't entirely sure what his motivation is. The movie doesn't put us in his head, which makes him a great mystery. It's the female cast carries this. Nicole Kidman as the headmistress is stern and reserved. Kirsten Dunst is the schoolteacher, desperate to get out of her current disappointing life. She's the most blinded to the soldier's charms. Elle Fanning is, most simply put, a horny teenager. She's bored by virtually everything and attracted to Farrell because he's something new that she hasn't figured out yet. Her positioning and angling in nearly every scene made me chuckle every time. The other girls (Oona Laurence, Angourie Rice, Addison Riecke, and Emma Howard) all have similar shades of the same big brother response to Farrell with a touch of schoolgirl crush. The film an examination of women representing different stages in life and how they respond differently to the same situation. I was impressed by them all.

The film is set during the Civil War, but it doesn't need to be. It's in its own world. The Civil War just gives an excuse for all the other men to be gone. What I enjoy about this is what I liked so much about Free Fire (a very different kind of movie). I love a story that sets up characters in a confined space and sees how they bounce off each other. There's very little plot that's externally-driven once Farrell gets in the house. It's all interpersonal conflict. That's how I like it. Even when the film takes a big tonal shift in the third act, it fits with the rest of the film.

Coppola's direction very well may be the star of this movie. I love how the film is lit. It's a very dark film. If you told me they filmed it only using natural light, I'd believe you. It feels like something awful is around the corner the whole time. That reminded me a lot of The Witch last year. It lingers more than it scares. There's a dread throughout. Coppola's sense of humor is equally dark. Like some amazing gallows humor with the girls' stitching lessons, for example.

I can already tell this movie is going to grow on me. I saw a bunch of movies this weekend, and this is the one I keep coming back to. It's a similar feeling I had with The Witch. I can't shake it. It's excellently directed and well acted. The story is simple and it's a lean 90-ish minutes. It won't be for everyone, but if you like low-boil thrillers with a haunting touch, this is a good one.

Side Note: Ok, one thing was bugging me the whole time I watched this. I'm 95% sure I've never seen the 1971 original film, but this story felt very familiar. Does anyone know of another movie or maybe an episode of a TV show that pulls from this story structure? I haven't found anything yet.

Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend