Don't Worry Darling

[On Pointe]

I went to see Don't Worry Darling yesterday,  a film that has become notorious because of shenanigans on and off set between the director and the actors.  Basically it's an idea in search of a plot,  and the idea is Ira Levin's - it's a rehash of The Stepford Wives,  but this time produced,  written and directed almost entirely by women.   I'm a big fan of its star,  Florence Pugh,  a brilliant film talent,  who incidentally bears a striking resemblance to Sara Mearns.  She plays Alice,  a not so happy housewife.   And there's Harry Styles - I'm not a fan of his music but he was okay.  (The part was originally cast with Shia Labeouf,  who can be problematic off-camera,  but can really deliver when it counts.). Olivia Wilde cast herself in a small but pivotal role in the film she directed.  By the time Don't Worry Darling made it to film festivals,  most of the lead actors and the director were barely on speaking terms,  and Florence Pugh flat out refused to make any appearances with the others.  And yet,  the film itself is pretty good,  beautiful to look at,  and much better than reviews would lead one to believe.

The most intriguing aspect of the film to me is how dance is used to advance the narrative.  Every day in the desert town of Victory,  bright yellow trolleys transport the obedient wives to a ballet class,  conducted by the wife of the founder of the town.  The women are terrified of her,  as she tells them that ballet represents discipline and control.  The not so subtle implication is that she's referring to the control that the company has over their lives.  While the class members appear to have some training,  except for one or two,  they're obviously not professional dancers.  Later they are cleverly swapped for actual dancers,  who perform a choreographic illustration of Alice's emotions at key moments.  In her delirium,  they turn into a Busby Berkeley chorus,  shot from above as they form the iris of an eye.   When Alice's husband Jack is promoted at a company dinner,  instead of a speech,  he's made to dance a demeaning soft shoe routine,  looking more like a marionette than a human.

With all this dance onscreen,  I expected the choreographer to be prominently credited,  but I had to search for her name - Denna Thomsen.  Ms. Thomsen needs to have a serious chat with her agent.  The hairdressers,  accountants and grips get better billing than she does.

[Drew]

I've been very curious about this...likely will watch it when it's available to watch at home. Thanks for the review--had read reviews but not realized how prominent dance was in the movie.

[dirac]

My thanks as well, On Pointe. Florence Pugh has been going from strength to strength, so I'm not surprised to hear that she is good here.

"Don't Worry Darling" seems to be a sort of Stepford Wives-Truman Show-Handmaid's Tale mashup, but derivative doesn't necessarily mean bad.

Levin's Stepford Wives concept has proved to have remarkable staying power. Jordan Peele's "Get Out" was virtually an uncredited remake, right down to an I'll-just-die-if-I-don't-get-this-recipe breakdown at a garden party.

[On Pointe]

1 hour ago, dirac said:

Levin's Stepford Wives concept has proved to have remarkable staying power. Jordan Peele's "Get Out" was virtually an uncredited remake, right down to an I'll-just-die-if-I-don't-get-this-recipe breakdown at a garden party.

I don't see much in common between Get Out and The Stepford Wives.  To me Get Out is closer in concept to Invasion of the Body Snatchers,  the first one,  not the Nicole Kidman remake.  Fun fact - the actor Kevin McCarthy, who plays the lead in the black and white original,  was the brother of the writer Mary McCarthy,  whose feud with Lillian Hellman was legendary.  He was also a cousin of Senator Eugene McCarthy.

Olivia Wilde has said that she was inspired by her loathing of the ideas of Canadian social critic and provocateur Jordan Peterson.  He is a hero to many misogynistic incels,  and predictably they are piling on iwith what I feel is unfair and improper commentary about Wilde.  Whatever,  Wilde's use of dance was a bold and original choice.

[dirac]

Peele has acknowledged his debt to Levin (for both "Rosemary's Baby" and "The Stepford Wives").  The resemblances in "Get Out" are both structural and thematic, I'd say, but there is a bit of Body Snatchers in there as well, now that you mention it.

There was an excellent remake of Body Snatchers in 1978, directed by Phil Kaufman and written by W.D. Richter. In some respects I prefer it to the original, and it makes wonderful use of San Francisco as the setting. Great cast led by Donald Sutherland and Brooke Adams.