Alice, Darling

I get the low ratings. People want their breath taken away, getting excited and entertained. Well, this movie is true to life, and life rarely does any of these. At least not in a good way when you live with an abuser. It sucks all happiness out of you and makes your life anxious and miserable. The movie is kind of slow and uneventful so the hidden emotions can sink in and open your eyes. It's subtle, but spot-on. The three girls are all stellar! The abuser feels flat and hollow, because that's what abusers are - fake and pretending, until they think they've got you and show their real face. I have to admit, I did not enjoy the movie. It's not really meant to be enjoyed. But I enjoyed the superb acting, the setting, the genuine friendship and love, the little gestures. Anna Kendrick is killing it! And the supporting cast too! Remember to just be kind to each other. You don't know what the person in front of you might be going through or dealing with.

Loved this movie and a great debut for director Mary Nighy. The film creates a real sense of what it must be like for the abused party when the abuser is a controlling, manipulator. There were Great performances too from The three main characters who demonstrate the spirit of friendship as the became increasingly aware of what was really going on. It just goes to show that a psychological drama does not need to be extreme or violent and that the damage and trauma of control and manipulation can be subtle and unseen.

It's a mystery to me why the early reviews on IMDB have been so negative about this movie.

First off, I do understand why not everyone appreciates this movie.

It's more than a little slow in places, and it really doesn't qualify as a thriller or a mystery. Frankly it's not that thrilling, and it's never much of a mystery.

Honestly I watched it because I like Anna Kendrick, and also because I like thrillers in which there's some sort of clever twist and/or the bad guy really gets his/her comeuppance at the end.

Without giving away too much, I'll just say that I was a bit disappointed in that area.

However I also admit I was surprised to see one of the more realistic portrayals of the phenomenon known as the narcistic relationship. This is where someone - a boss, a family member, a boyfriend/girlfriend, etc keeps you under their control by quietly, politely, every-so-helpfully telling you that you just can't do anything right. And the worse they get, the more you believe you're the one with the problem.

And while this movie isn't exactly action-packed or even particularly suspenseful, anyone who has ever been in one of that situation will undoubtedly say that they got it right. The worst bosses typically aren't the ones that yell and scream. The worst family members aren't the ones who call you names. And many, many abusive relationships never involve either participant laying a hand on the other. In each case, the worst offenders are the ones who quietly make you hate yourself.

As far as the ending, again I won't give away too much except to say that once again, anyone who has ever been in that situation will say ya - they got it right.

You're with a man who's very subtly coercive, in a relationship that's vile and corrosive, playing tricks with how you think, makes you wither, narrow, shrink, this is no way to spend your days, no life to live. Time with friends gives you a chance to float, reflect, of how your mind has crashed and burned, become a wreck, with their help they catch your fall, assist the break with a large maul, evict the poison from your heart, with great effect.

I thought Anna Kendrick was amazing as the mentally anguished and tortured Alice, who's fairy-tale romance had turned out to be anything but, as she finds out what friendship and love really can be, when those close truly care.

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"Alice, Darling brilliantly tackles the sensitive topic of abusive relationships. Alanna Francis' script stands out with a profound, respectful look into an emotionally disturbed Anna Kendrick - career-best performance - but also into the genuine best of female friendship.

A non-exploitative look into how psychological violence can be as traumatic as any other kind of physical abuse, as well as how insanely difficult it is to leave such a toxic relationship.

Mary Nighy cannot escape the subgenre's formulaic boundaries, but she should be proud of such an enlightening, impactful feature directorial debut."

Rating: B+