Villains is like no movie you’ve ever watched before. And yes, you’ve probably heard that said before on many occasions across many movies, but it’s true. You haven’t seen anything as awkward, funny, and frightening as Villains, starring Bill Skarsgard, Maika Monroe, Jeffrey Donovan, and Kyra Sedgwick.
Let’s start with the awkward of it all. Any other movie and this would’ve hurt them. Not Villains. Mickey and Jules, played by Skarsgard and Monroe, are awkward AF. But in that comes an honesty and brilliance that makes them more than two awkward criminals looking for a car to blow this popsicle stand after robbing a gas station. They have dreams, aspirations, and see something at the end of the rainbow that isn’t robbing, scheming, or breaking into homes. That makes them shine. That sets them apart. And that makes them characters worth knowing and investing your time in.
Then there’s the funny of it all. Mickey and Jules feel like they’re in the middle of a buddy cop film where you aren’t too sure if things are as scary as they seem or we’re just scared scamps who jump and freak out at the smallest thing aka a girl chained up in the basement. Which, if we really think about it it’s terrifying but in the context of the movie we aren’t too sure how things are going to turn out and whether we should laugh or be worried about what comes next.
Same goes for Donovan and Sedgwick’s characters George and Gloria when it comes to the funny. Their characters are hilarious. Maybe not in the same context as Mickey and Jules but they have this edge, this spark to them, that makes what they say funny and terrifying at the same time. It’s a delicate balance that I’m having trouble comparing to any other set of characters I’ve ever encountered. And this edge, this spark, it leaves you wanting to know more about these two “innocent bystanders/homeowners” who had their privacy violated.
And here is where the frightening comes in.
Mickey and Jules are going down a dangerous road. They are robbers who hold people at gun point. Sure, it’s because they have a dream and want to escape off to Florida together. But what they’re doing is dangerous and full of consequences that they encounter when they stumble upon a girl locked up in the basement of George and Gloria’s house. The house isn’t the consequences. The girl locked in the basement isn’t either. Hell, even George and Gloria aren’t truly the consequences of their actions.
The consequences of it all for Mickey and Jules is testing how much they’re willing to do to make their Florida dream come true without losing the awkward, funny, kind, and practical people they are. That’s where the true tests lays for these two lovers. And without giving anything away, because if you came here for spoilers you’ve come to the wrong place, they make it to a place where they don’t lose the kind of people they are.
That matters.
That sets these two apart from others like it.
And that makes Villains the kind of movie you should be watching now!
Villains is in theaters today.
