Lou

In a secluded part of the Pacific Northwest, loner Lou Adell (Allison Janney) is living a solitary life with her dog Jax with her only regular contact being with single mother Hannah Dawson (Jurmee Smollett) and her daughter Vee (Ridley Bateman) who rent property on Lou's land. During a massive storm Hannah's abusive and presumed dead ex Phillip (Logan-Marshall-Green) kidnaps their daughter Vee and Hannah enlists Lou's help in tracking the two down leading to Lou tapping into her dormant skillset and long buried wounds that made her who she is.

Lou is the directorial debut of cinematographer Anna Forester whose previous directing credits were in television such as Criminal Minds and Outlander. Produced by J. J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions, the film while initially setup at Paramount was dropped early on with Bad Robot opting to film Lou independently with distribution rights eventually being picked up by Netflix. The movie doesn't break too far from the established formula of this kind of action thriller, but it does deliver on suspense and character you expect from this type of film.

One of the things that stood out to me with Lou was just how gritty the film looks. While Lou is set in the 1980s, the movie wisely avoids becoming "nostalgia porn" and really only uses 80s iconography or references when appropriate and in context rather than reminding you every few minutes as some films set in the decade have been guilty of. From the hard-edged fight sequences to some really tense survival sequences such as a setpiece on a lopsided rope bridge the movie reminded me of thrillers such as 1988's Shoot to Kill which mixed this kind of chase movie with environmental perils. Allison Janney is really good as Lou and her performance as this hardened isolated loner is well done and she fits the role very well in terms of both the character's backstory and skillset as well as conveying the inner turmoil of this character when it's revealed what the source is. The other actors are good in their roles too with Jurmee Smollett's performance as an abuse survivor quite engaging and Logan Marshall-Green a solidly done antagonist even if they're not as compelling as Janney's role. The movie does have a twist relating to certain character relationships and like most twists related to this type of genre exercise I think most will see it coming, but it works well enough thematically and leads to a tense and emotional climax that I was willing to let it pass.

Lou doesn't reinvent the wheel when it comes to this kind of gritty minimalist action thriller, but it gives enough meat to the characters, aesthetics, and performances that I was kept engaged throughout the film's brisk 100-minute runtime. Anna Foerster shows solid work in her first feature in the director's seat and I look forward to seeing her hone her style in other films.

As "Lou" (2022 release; 109 min) opens, we are introduced to Lou, a fifty-something "lone ranger" woman in remote Washington State (we later learn it's the San Juan Islands). One senses she has had a complicated past. Her neighbor is Hannah, a thirty-something mother of a young daughter. A big storm is arriving soon, and before you know it, things go haywire on many different levels. At this point we are 10 min into the movie.

Couple of comments: this film is directed by noted cinematographer Anna Foerster. More importantly, the film is produced by none other than J. J. Abrams, immediately raiding expectations. Alas, it was not to be. For that, look no further than the script, which is frankly quite weak. Not only do things happen that simply make no sense, but worse, there is never any doubt how all of this is going to play out in the end. There are two bright lights: first, Allison Janney brings a tough performance in the title role. Second, the outdoor scenery (somewhere in the wild and wide open Pacific Northwest) is simply tops. It's a shame that the rest of the production isn't on the same high level.

"Lou" premiered on Netflix this past weekend. If you are in the mood for an "action thriller" that is fairly straight-forward if not predictable, I'd readily suggest you keep your expectations fairly low, and then draw your own conclusion.

Great story, great acting . The action scenes/ fight are fantastic .

The film is very good not understanding why anyone would vote this down below 6 ? I gave it a 8 because it's such great performance by Allison Jenney.

I found it just a tad , predictable , but over all an entertaining bout of film.

Don't worry about the lower scores just remember to watch this movie for the pleasure to watch Allison kick some serious arse .

This is pretty darn good and deserves attention . Many will call it woke but it seems organic . Enjoy the movie it's worth a watch .

Turn of your tv watch this movie now .

Firstly this isn't gonna win any awards for originality. Twists are very predictable but fine. I'm sure some people are gonna nag about this and that. Some people fail to realize that it's just a movie, it's entertainment. Decent storyline, good acting, cinematography was great. I wasn't bored throughout at all. Jurnee Smolett was good as usual(loved her in 'Lovecraft Country'). The little girl was adorable. Everything was explained even if you saw it coming. The key most people lose is that you're not a professional movie critic so stop acting like one. If you don't like something, turn it off and move on and don't voice your other issues into your entertainment and you'll be fine, I promise.

This movie could have been very good because the cast and acting are solid, with excellent cinematography. The story is so ridiculous, however, that no one could ever believe it and dramas don't work well with stupid scripts. Allison Janney, who plays a former CIA agent, is always worth watching and so are the other actors even though their dialogue is fairly limited. Jurney Smollett also does fine given the poor script she has to work with. It is impossible to describe how absurd the story is without including too many spoilers, so I suggest seeing this if you are an Allison Janney fan with about an hour and forty-five minutes with nothing else to do.