Promising Young Woman ***½ (out of 5) (R) Revenge dramas range from the slowly psychological course to the high-octane action variety. Rarely do they involve the intricate and twisty sort of plot we find here, as Carey Mulligan avenges a scarring incident of sexual abuse from her college days. The result is an excellent, if grim, foray into the mental realm, relatively short on the action side. Even better, the premise could hardly make this tale more timely, reinforcing the Me Too Movement's spotlight on the forms of harassment (and worse) that women have been enduring for ages.
Mulligan uses a variety of disguises to bar hop, feign extreme drunkenness and lure men into trying to take advantage of her impairment. We see how much she's been doing it long before we begin to understand why. She had inexplicably dropped out of medical school and is working in a coffee shop, to the consternation of her baffled parents. When she meets a lad (Bo Burnham) who longed for her since med school, the possibility of a normal romance makes a dent in her staunch defenses. But how might that mesh with the long-standing bitterness that has molded most of her adult conduct and mind-set?
Writer/director Emerald Fennell crafted and steered a superb script for her talented cast. Though primarily an actress, Fennell also wrote six episodes of the terrific, female-driven TV series, Killing Eve, setting the table for this feature film debut wearing either hat. She maintains suspense admirably, gradually unfolding more layers of the driving forces behind these proceedings. She also resists hyperbolizing the players or the situations, making her points more profoundly via a relatively realistic presentation. Would-be detractors could not legitimately write this off as a feminist diatribe. Mulligan delivers her usual first-rate performance, rendered more impressive by the range of personae roiling and evolving within her character. The result is a relevant and engrossing movie for all adult demographics who aren't featured on shows like Cops. (Now available on DVD)