Films for Breakfast

Erotic thrillers feel endangered in cinema nowadays, especially after the Fifty Shades franchise has ended. Long gone are the days of Cruel Intentions or Eyes Wide Shut – and if one happens to be made, it’s likely to be a streaming release. A24 and director Halina Reijn attempt to bring the subgenre back just in time for the holidays with Babygirl, a film that follows Romy (Nicole Kidman), a high-powered CEO who goes through the motions every day as a leader for both her company and family. She’s married to a supportive and accomplished husband named Jacob (Antonio Banderas) – but it becomes quickly apparent in the opening moments of the film that Romy isn’t sexually satisfied, seeking out pornography right after having sex with her husband.

Enter in Samuel (Harris Dickinson), a young intern with mysterious aspirations. Romy and Samuel quickly spark a tumultuous and lust-charged relationship-turned-affair. As thrilling as it is for Romy, she has to ask herself whether or not the fact that her family and career are on the line is part of the arousal or a genuine thing she fears. Throughout this affair and all the steamy sex scenes it generates, director Halina Reijn explores themes of consent, desire, power, and trauma.

For any erotic thriller, it’s imperative that the actors playing these characters have believable chemistry with one-another, both sexually and in-general. In the case of Nicole Kidman and Harris Dickinson, they spark from the moment they share the screen together. Kidman turns in one the best performances of her career, as she brilliantly balances the desire and apprehension of her needs. She conveys the push and pull of her relationship with Samuel with such sadness and drive, which I found to be extremely compelling. Dickinson has been one of the best up-and-coming actors for a while now, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this film truly set him off into the mainstream, as he’s fantastic here. He suavely and masterfully keeps the audience on their toes with a performance that feels both mysterious and seductive all at once.

I was a big fan of Halina Reijn’s last film Bodies Bodies Bodies, as I found it to be an interesting commentary on social status, social media, sexuality, and more – all to the backdrop of a fun horror angle. Reijn attempts a similar swing here, as Samuel and Romy’s relationship explores the age gaps, power dynamics, and Romy’s inherent desires and needs in each of their interactions. While I enjoyed Babygirl, it does feel a little less fluid than her previous feature. Each scene is individually compelling and there are a handful of masterfully done moments, but it largely feels like regurgitates the same point over and over in different scenarios. This isn’t to say the film isn’t entertaining, because it is – but it feels a bit empty when it is simultaneously juggling so many big ideas.

On a technical level, this feels even more accomplished than Bodies Bodies Bodies. The score from Cristobal Tapia de Veer is transcendent from the first moment it kicks in, and the way it flows with the sharp editing is pretty miraculous stuff. On top of this, the cinematography from DP Jasper Wolf is something to behold – this film truly pops visually with striking color and incredibly fascinating angles in seemingly simple sequences that make every moment engaging. This paves way for a gorgeous playground for the characters to interact and thrive within that is intoxicating as an audience member.

My issues with the film do clash with everything I otherwise love – as I think my issues with the screenplay and thematic build-up of its themes comes ahead in the third act, as I found the resolution to all these storylines to be truly shaggy and uneven. I left the film feeling more cold to its ideas and message than I *think* the filmmakers intended due to how it decides to wrap things up, and seemingly bring in/cut short elements of the plot at a whim. However, it truly is undeniable that Dickinson and Kidman’s individual performances and shared chemistry is enough to make this a fascinating watch. And even with a slightly uneven screenplay and underwhelming third act, Halina Reijn still delivers an impressively thought-provoking film that is undeniably ambitious.