Sorry, Baby

Rating: 9/10 Stars

Eva Victor's "Sorry, Baby," released in 2025, is a masterful and surprisingly resonant film that deftly navigates the complexities of trauma with an unexpected and often hilarious touch. This isn't your typical heavy-handed drama; instead, it offers a refreshing, darkly comedic lens through which to explore profound human experiences, particularly the aftermath of sexual assault.

The film's greatest strength lies in its wonderfully crafted characters, who feel remarkably authentic and lived-in. Agnes, the protagonist (played with nuanced brilliance by Eva Victor herself), grapples with a past "bad thing" that has left her somewhat emotionally stalled. Her journey to reclaim her life, however, is far from a straight line, and it's in the messy, often absurd detours that the film truly shines.

Among the standout performances, Gavin (Lucas Hedges) emerges as a genuinely heartwarming presence. His kind-hearted, somewhat clumsy demeanor provides a vital counterpoint to Agnes's internal struggles. Their budding relationship, depicted with a delicate blend of awkwardness and sincerity, offers moments of tender vulnerability and much-needed levity. Gavin's ability to "sense" Agnes's pain without prying, offering quiet support and respect, makes him a truly memorable and endearing character.

Then there's Agnes's feline companion, Cat (or Olga, as named in some reports), who, despite being an animal, plays a significant role in mirroring Agnes's journey. The film cleverly uses the interactions with her cat, including a particularly unsettling yet darkly humorous scene involving a mouse, to symbolize Agnes's own struggles with control, empathy, and the often-unpredictable nature of life itself. The cat is more than just a pet; it's a silent witness and a catalyst for subtle emotional shifts.

What sets "Sorry, Baby" apart is its bold and incredibly effective use of humor to deal with such a weighty theme. The script, also penned by Victor, understands that life, even in the face of profound pain, is replete with the ridiculous and the mundane. From socially unaware doctors to bureaucratic hoops, the film finds moments of genuine laughter in situations that would, in other hands, be purely somber. This tonal balance is a delicate tightrope walk, but "Sorry, Baby" manages it with grace and unflinching honesty, making the film not only impactful but also incredibly watchable. It allows the audience to breathe, to connect with the characters on a human level, and to find solace in shared experiences, even if those experiences are tinged with darkness.

"Sorry, Baby" is not just a film about recovery; it's a testament to the resilience of the human spirit, the unexpected sources of comfort, and the power of finding humor in the unlikeliest of places. It's a vital, surprising, and deeply moving cinematic experience that will undoubtedly leave a lasting impression. Highly recommended.

I am not a great fan of plot spilling in reviews, so I will try to approach this film round and round. It has so much more; other than the plot itself and one of this movie's main occurrences revolves around the fact that there is a word and a situation that no one wants to describe or call by name.

First of all, I have just adored the fact that this movie is playing with his timeline. I've like it since I first encountered it at Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction" and from that day, I have a soft spot for those kind of movies, that makes us assemble the plot and it's details, according to stages from different times.

Second - this movie has some fine small scenes and conversations that doesn't feel related to the plot, but together those situations, scenes and sequences make this movie to be what it is. Small encounters and conversations that makes this movie to be so unique - sad, funny and dramatic - exactly like its main character.

It is directed and scripted by the main character and actress (Eva Victor), that I've personally never heard or watched in other movies. The other actors and actresses, that hovers above and aside are so good and contributes to shape and mold her character's...character and nature.

The puzzle that the viewer needs to assemble is composed out of several chapters, that have hinted headlines. The directing and screenwriting of several situations is just brilliant. Leaves you wonder about a situation that you can guess what it is according to details that were put on the sides of the way to the scene.

And like in each one of "Harry Potter" books and films - there is one word in this movie that is not allowed to tell or say. It can be vaguely described or hinted, but if someone will spill it out, it will make the main character confront with her emotions and feelings.

Thus, and after all being said, we understand that our protagonist should find other ways to deal with what she's been through. Sometimes it is through laughter or sarcasm and sometimes...through speaking with characters that cannot judge or understand.

Anyway...this movie has a lot of charm in it. Great acting skills and surprisingly also great writing and directing skills by a young, promising young woman, which demonstrates control over each and every one of the described skills. It deserves 7.5 stars, from my side.

Beautiful acting by the lead, but the script lacks full development of the characters. Hard to understand main character's motivation. No development of origin. Also, she has no family. Why?

Lastly, portrayal of males was 1 dimensional and unbalanced. We see the sociopath, the nice but weak guy, the main doctor, and the strangely helpful but random older man. But we don't have the presence of one strong male in Agnes' life. That would have made this movie much better and more balanced.

Without that, you get a gut punch of having watched something really terrible happen to a nice person without any real good explanation and without enough redemption.

As such, it was unpleasant without enough redemption.

SORRY, BABY (2025) ***1/2 Eva Victor, Naomi Ackie, Louis Cancelmi, Kelly McCormack, Lucas Hedges, John Carroll Lynch. Heartfelt and heartbreaking dramedy with Victor (who, if Sigourney Weaver & Paula Cole had a baby, resembles) as a small-town liberal arts junior professor going thru her life year-by-year with personal events - both hilariously wonderful and horrendously terrible with equal weight given - in her dry-witted, dead-pan and amiable manner with aplomb. Ably assisted by her bestie Ackie (adding sweet gravitas and anchoring the film soulfully so) and neighbor love interest Hedges (touchingly gawky and lovely), Victor (who also wrote & makes an assured directorial debut) adds layers to character development skillfully with its short-story vibes and interactions of cringe-worthy moments while balancing the deeply poignant life lessons as well as the smile-thru-it-all complexities of navigating the pitfalls with the triumphs. Bonus - arguably cinema's cutest kitty & baby. Ever.

One of the year's best films.

This is another film where I have a ton to say, but don't want my original thoughts getting lost in a giant pile of word vomit while I try and put the thoughts to the page.

Very clearly: I am not a woman, and have not gone through the specific type of trauma that takes place in this film. That said, I am a human being and have experienced a multitude of what many would consider to be out of the norm excessive traumas in my life, from an ex partner committing suicide to losing a brother to an accidental fentanyl overdose.

Trauma is something I believe until recently in this country, was an issue that was somewhat a shoved aside, something that wasn't talked about, something that in my parents day (I'm 43), would even be something to be embarrassed about. I'm sure all our Gen X parents were told to 'Man up' at some point in their lives.

Having gone through these very personal traumatic situations in my life has had a tremendous effect on who I am as a person, and how I deal with the outside world, and how I am able to control my own inner thoughts and emotions.

This is an incredible directorial debut from Eva Victor, who like many other found during 2020 while we were all stuck at our homes, and who in a very dark sarcastic way was able to breath some life and laughter into our minds during that psychotic year (also the year my brother passed).

With this film Eva paints around an act of force so intense and so heavy, without ever actually naming the act, but what she brilliantly shows you as a viewer is what becomes of someone who has experienced trauma throughout the following years, whether it be through moments of pure fear, moments of unwilling panic, moments of using laughter to continue to grieve, and moments of pure unadulterated pain.

I've been through these moments in my life, and I am thankful this film exists, as if you have not experienced heavy trauma in your life, this helps paint the portrait of what it's like for those of us who have.

I love the control of tone throughout and how it remains somber while allowing moments of breaths of fresh air through sarcastic comedy to allow your brain to take a breather.

The film executes a non-linear path that bookends itself with a monologue that I will definitely be reading over again and going back to in moments of solitude where I need to remember that even though trauma exists in my life, there are ways to pass through to get to the light at the end of the tunnel.

I'm looking forward to more from Eva Victor. Fantastic, touching work here.