Eileen (2023)

CinemaSerf

6.0

Dec 2, 2023

Thomasin McKenzie is quite good as the eponymous, rather timid, prison secretary who lives a rather pedestrian life watching the couples make out in the car-park, or fantasising about a quickie with one of her colleagues, before returning home to her retired cop/dipso father replete with two bottles! The arrival of new psychologist "Rebecca" (Anne Hathaway) injects a little life into her dull routine. This assertive sophisticate takes an interest in "Eileen", they go for a drink - there's even some flirting - before "Rebecca" shares a secret with her new friend that involves a young man in pri…

Rarely have I seen a film as implausible, unfocused and meandering as this second feature outing from director William Oldroyd. After an impressive debut with “Lady Macbeth” (2016), the filmmaker has stumbled seriously in this latest effort, a supposed psychological mystery/thriller that never finds traction and yet somehow manages to go wildly off the rails in the final act. This cinematic misfire examines the relationship that develops between two women who work at a young men’s prison in 1960s small town Massachusetts. Eileen (Thomasin McKenzie) is a reserved, awkward, often-bullied, sexual…