Eileen, the first film from William Oldroyd since 2016’s Lady Macbeth made Florence Pugh a star, is more defined by what it isn't than what it is. Like his previous film, Eileen is an exercise in restraint, as this story, based on Ottessa Moshfegh’s book of the same name and with a screenplay written by Moshfegh and Luke Goebel, zigs where you expect it to zag, always defying the audience's expectations.
Like Lady Macbeth, Eileen is also about the restrictions put on women in the past, and fighting against such limitations, as both Eileen and Dr. St. John allow themselves to embrace their happiness, despite the world around them. We also are being told a story of generational trauma, be it through Eileen frequently getting insulted by her father, or a young prisoner who has something to hide. And yet, this isn't what Eileen is about—well, at least fully.
Yet what makes the Moshfegh and Goebel’s screenplay and Oldyroyd’s directing work so well is how perfectly it handles the shifts and tones that could’ve made this film go off the rails. What begins as a potential romance all of a sudden becomes an unexpected thriller, pulling the rug out from the audience. Yet this switch doesn’t entirely feel out of left field, and it only improves the intensity and stakes of the possible romance at hand.
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