Been hyped for this since it was first announced. This teaser does not disappoint.

https://youtu.be/6S3phVSi0tI

I can’t think of a group of more inspired casting in a film across the board. Like even a throwaway role like asshole boyfriend #3 they got Jon Bernthal channeling in his Walking Dead Shane from that quick clip, lol. And im amped to see Kaluuya and Tyree Henry play bad guy muscle.

What’s crazy is the weakest link here is McQueen; while he’s one of the best directors working so far his pacing has been either beautifully filmed and slow meticulously paced to beautifully filmed and even slower meticulously paced. Going to be interesting here to see him push pedal to the medal in something that’s gonna be more akin to an action movie (then again, could be the trailer editing and this might end up being more of a thriller)

I never doubted McQueen cause ever since this film's inception, I always thought I looked like a crime drama. It seemed like to be Heat with women and that's what it looks like.

Was out of town. I was ENRAGED. Would've been a fucking fascinating test screening.

Is a test screening different from what general public
will eventually see in theaters?

Widows | Official Trailer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nN2yBBSRC78

On another note, I'm glad McQueen is doing a less serious movie than 12 Years.

Granted there's no other place he could have gone, outside of The Middle Passage, that could be more harrowing. He's earned the opportunity to get some mainstream Hollywood love. Hopefully this is successful so he can get the opportunity to make his types of films.

definitely McQueen’s most mainstream movie, even though the mix of themes (crime, politics, family, inequality) gives it enough weight to avoid being “just” a crime Oscar movie. Of course with Viola Davis playing this fierce and harsh, and well surrounded by a note-perfect cast, there was no way this movie could end up soupy and boring. Sumptuously filmed, with camera movements I’d follow till the end of the earth. The script loves itself maybe a tad much but I may need to watch it again because there’s a lot going on.
Oh and praise be to Daniel Kaluuya who is bone-chillingly perfect. Someone give him a big starring role soon pls

This isn't "an Oscar movie" in the same way that Gone Girl isn't really designed to be an Oscar movie. It's full of terrific actors chewing the scenery, social commentary delivered with a sledgehammer, over-the-top dramatic Zimmer score, and plenty of intentional goofiness/B-movie scenes and lines. It might get Oscar noms regardless, but it's not a "serious" movie the way the Oscar label (or the name Steve McQueen in the credits) may lead you to expect.

I expected McQueen to dive further into serious character development, the way most of his previous work has done, but he seems to enjoy here the fact that he's mostly deploying rote characters with snappy zingers. A few characters get just enough backstory (usually delivered in a monologue) to keep them complex, but even the ones that aren't are still a lot of fun.

Daniel Kaluuya and Robert Duvall are both fantastic playing the types of pure evil characters that wouldn't feel out of place in a Tyler Perry movie, but here, y'know, the acting is good and the dialogue is good and the cinematography is good etc. This is the benefit of brilliant casting. He tosses Garrett Dillahunt and Kevin O'Connor both into roles that could've easily been cardboard cut-outs, but strong character actors and strong production value elevates it.

Plus, y'know, there's just the thrill of the fact that we don't see some of these things onscreen. As Viola Davis has pointed out in the press junkets, we open with a dark-skinned middle-aged female hero engaged in sexual open-mouth kissing. How often do we see that on screen in a mainstream studio movie? How often do we see a complex depiction of the escort lifestyle?

Finally, while some of the social commentary stuff clunks a bit imo, the depiction of politicians is absolutely dynamite, because its two main characters get the most complexity-- maybe even more than the widows do. Farrell is trying to win, not because he's pure evil, but because he can't imagine losing his position in life. He genuinely thinks his programs help people, but he also genuinely likes how much money it puts in his pocket. Meanwhile, Henry is from the neighborhood and wants the rich white outsiders not to control his neighborhood, but he also admits to running for office because it's a means for upward mobility. He's not a noble savior of the common man-- he just is tired of being a thug on a street level and aspires to the legal thuggery of politics. The fact that neither of these guys is a desirable candidate really resonates. (It also allows for a lot of fun monologuing from two actors that can *really* chew scenery.)

Overall a lot to enjoy here. It probably lags a bit here and there, some sequences drag compared to others, etc, but it's an elevated pulp bomb the likes of which we rarely get to see. So I enjoyed it.

And I am there for it because the cinematography worked for me.

My girl started covering her eyes every time he appeared

I liked it for the most part but need to see it again. A few things didn't quite make sense to me but know I'll enjoy it again regardless for the performances & camera work in the vehicles.

Loved the opening shot from the back of the van & the limo ride from the projects to the mansion.

Dude was amazing. Scary amazing.

and had 6 goons with him, i was like awww fucckkk! I was looking for the exits, scared for my own life in that scene.

he was a great villain.

>and had 6 goons with him, i was like awww fucckkk! I was
>looking for the exits, scared for my own life in that scene.
>
>he was a great villain.

his eyes alone should win some awards

so much depth and steve mcqueen is on another level. very organic wasn't perfect
but nothing is. it all came together nicely.

Definitely agree with the nod to Heat mentioned in an earlier post. Everyone chews up their scenes...some amazing shots.

I rarely if ever want to see this type of film twice, but I am going back to see this again.


BTW, the theater was PACKED.

took our ma (67) to see it. Theater had all types of folks in there, which was nice to see (young/old/black/white).

We really dug it. Personally I dug the performances the most. EVERYone was good and seemed to be enjoying themselves. Some specific standouts for me were Daniel Kaluuya, Robert Duvall, Brian Tyree Henry (love everything I've seen from this guy so far), Elizabeth Debicki, Cynthia Erivo. Ma dug it too, and so did the 2 70+ ladies sitting next to us who we chatted with for a bit after the show.

so yep, I'd say this one gets a thumbs up. I know we enjoyed ourselves....

(I dug how it ended too, I thought that last scene was a nice touch...)

where she says how have you been when the other girl is getting in the car?

Was there more to it than that?

This movie was alright, I wasn't shocked that the husband showed back up but was mildly surprised by who he showed up with I guess.
But - towards the end... I felt like the wife should've known
he was gonna pop up, and maybe she did... she was still holding.
I could've done without the scene with Colin and Liam.
Would've made scene with the wife and Liam play better because they did a good job of making you forget about him.

well paced flick, I liked the way it was shot.
decent crime drama.

Remember, she studied his planning notebook, so they had everything scripted out. When Daniel Kaluuya showed back up...they weren't surprised, she knew from what happened at the bowling alley that his tendency was to follow behind folks. So they feigned being unprepared, and had a vehicle ready once he popped up to rob them. Same with Liam showing up. She knew it was coming, but the question was whether he would actually try and kill her...and she was prepped for that too.

I agree on the first point about Daniel and his tendencies.

husband wouldn't have, "i'll fake my death and show up to collect my money after you've stolen it for me" in the book though.

no snark. maybe I'm reading your reply wrong?

>where she says how have you been when the other girl is getting in the car?

of the girl who'd gotten shot.

Then again, it version of this is a set-up for a sequel.

It's a little unwieldy and loses some of the threads along the way but there is so much to love that while it may wobble at times, it never falls. All of the female leads give tremendous performances as does most of the supporting cast especially Kaluuya. He's an actor that can really do anything (leading actor, supporting actor, iconic villain).

One of my beefs with the film is Bryan Tyree Henry's limited screen time especially considering how captivating his performance and fascinating his character was. What do we get instead? More Colin Farrell as the conflicted Chicago politician apparently raised by the Kennedy's. That's a trade off the film suffers for.

McQueen is the current undisputed master of the long-take. While most director's use them to add sizzle he uses them as a story telling tool. Everyone else is using them to highlight stunt work he's out here using them to tell integral parts of his story to get his audience to think and feel.

Is it trying to juggle too many themes? Sure. Does it throw in a twist that belongs in a lesser film? Yes. Does said twist actually come as a shock because you expected better? For sure. But in the end, this is as 1970s a crime thriller you're gonna find in these days in times. I'd say it's more Girlfriends of Eddie Coyle than say Set It Off. I think this one is going to age well.

I really enjoyed the film, but I kept thinking throughout how much more rewarding this would have been as a limited series. If given the chance to really flesh out the spattering of brilliant actors, we really could have had something special. Everything felt rushed, which is crazy given the films extended run-time. I would have loved to have spent more time learning about Brian Tyree Henry's character. Or Carrie Coon's. Or Violas. Or Cynthia Erivo's. It all felt rushed. Still a wonderful story not often told. Fun. Funny. VIOLENT. Daniel Kaluuya is cold-blooded. The bowling alley scene was terrifying.

Overall a great flick though

McQueen's style makes it pop and the performances are quite solid -- more so the secondary cast than leads. has some elements that could be traded out/improved upon to take it up a level, but I'm here for McQueen versions of all the popular genres.

and a refreshing reminder the man can flat-out direct, not just deal with the heavy stuff of his last four films.