Eileen – Movie Review (4/5)

EILEEN is a new psychological thriller out on digital. It’s made in the vein of Hitchcock and with a style of decades past. Thomasin McKenzie is brilliant in the title role and Anne Hathaway shines as a key supporting character. Read our full Eileen movie review here!

EILEEN (2023) is a psychological thriller film directed by William Oldroyd that’s made in the iconic style of a Hitchcock movie. Still very much its own movie, but with that familiar vibe of Hitchcock.

Thomasin McKenzie plays the title role and she is mesmerizing. Actually, everyone is great in this movie, but apart from McKenzie, it really is all about Anne Hathaway’s character, Rebecca. With a runtime of 1 hour and 37 minutes, it’s a stylized and tightly told story.

Continue reading our full Eileen movie review below. Find it On Digital from January 2, 2024.

A moment in the life of Eileen

As indicated by the title, this psychological thriller is all about the character of Eileen (Thomasin McKenzie). It takes place around Christmas and only covers a very short time in her life. A life that is quite drab and monotonous.

Eileen is a young woman, unlike most other women in her small town. Well, unlike most other women, period. She seems to be unfazed by the fact that her job at the local youth prison would be rather gloomy to most young women. Also, she seems to get lost in her daydreams quite often.

One day, sunlight personified enters Eileen’s life with the arrival of the new counselor, Dr. Rebecca St. John (Anne Hathaway). Everything about Rebecca, from her car to her wardrobe and hairstyle just screams Big City and bigger dreams.

Eileen is instantly captivated by the glamorous and enigmatic presence of Rebecca. In this very drab small town, Rebecca sees a kindred spirit trapped in a young woman and the two women grow closer.

Unfortunately for the young woman – and this is what makes for a Hitchcock-inspired movie – Rebecca suddenly reveals a dark secret. One that leads to Eileen taking a path she never expected.

Before we get to the ending, a scene with a huge reveal comes. It’s one I don’t expect to ever forget!

Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway shine

I expected to be mesmerized by Anne Hathaway as Rebecca based on what I saw in the Eileen trailer. And I was. Very much so! She has the same vibe as Cate Blanchett in Carol. Though the two characters are nothing alike apart from the visual style.

However, I didn’t expect the title character to grab hold of me in equal measure.

Of course, anyone who has watched Last Night in SoHo will know that Thomasin McKenzie is just as mesmerizing. In this role, Thomas McKenzie both steals the show and manages to elevate every scene even further when acting across from Anne Hathaway.

The very different kind of power emanating from these two characters and actors is breathtaking. It’s a matter of the sum being greater than the parts. And the parts are plenty impressive, to begin with.

In other key roles, we see Shea Whigham as the drunken father of Eileen, Owen Teague as a prison guard, and Marin Ireland as the mother of an inmate. In even smaller roles, you’ll see Jefferson White, Sam Nivola, and Siobhan Fallon Hogan (The Shed).

Watch Eileen on Digital now!

Eileen was directed by William Oldroyd and this is only the second feature film from the director. He made his feature film debut in 2016 with Lady Macbeth which starred Florence Pugh. Of course, Florence Pugh is always brilliant (in my book, anyway), but so is Oldroyd.

It’s based on the 2015 novel of the same name by Ottessa Moshfegh. She also co-wrote the screenplay for this movie adaptation alongside her husband Luke Goebel. The two also wrote on the Causeway (2022) screenplay.

I love how this movie was made in the style of movies from the era of Hitchcock. We’ve been seeing this a lot in genre films for quite some time. A director like Ti West has made a career of it. From his 2009 movie The House of the Devil to his current trilogy: X, Pearl, and MaXXXine.

If you like psychological thrillers and Hitchcock, then this is a movie for you. The ending is both open and offers some answers, which is the only thing I can imagine some people will dislike. To me, it’s the only ending that could ever work – after all, it comes from the book.

EILEEN is out on digital from January 2, 2024.

Details

Director: William Oldroyd
Script: Luke Goebel, Ottessa Moshfegh
Cast: Thomasin McKenzie, Anne Hathaway, Shea Whigham, Marin Ireland, Owen Teague