A killer cast and a great script make Villains an uneven but enjoyable romp
Although the pacing isn’t perfect, the four central performances that anchor Villains elevate the darkly comedic indie thriller.
Released in the same weekend as massive star vehicles like Ad Astra and franchise juggernauts like Downton Abbey and Rambo: Last Blood, Villains is most likely nobody’s must-see movie this weekend. At surface level, Villains doesn’t have very much going for it as opposed to the other aforementioned films. It’s written and directed by a creative pair who don’t have any massive hits, there aren’t any true A-listers in the cast, and the film teeters the line between indie comedy and horror-thriller. All those factors aren’t really a recipe for box office success, however, they are a recipe for a hilariously written indie horror film with four amazing performances.
Focusing on incompetent, Bonnie and Clyde-esque small-time thieves Mickey (Bill Skarsgård) and Jules (Maika Monroe), Villains follows the wannabe outlaws as they accidentally find themselves at the mercy of a psychotic duo (Jeffrey Donovan and Kyra Sedgwick) after an attempt to rob their house goes awry.
The plot (like the film itself) is at once incredibly basic but also dizzyingly confusing. Writer/director duo Dan Berk and Robert Olsen take every opportunity to disorient the viewer. The dialogue is hilariously off-kilter; half the characters seemed to be plucked out of an indie coming-of-age film, and the others are straight off the pages of a Stephen King novel. The ping-ponging of tone mostly works to the movie’s advantage, however, you can’t help but feel empathy for Mickey and Jules when you’re just as confused about what’s going on as they are.
The whiplash-inducing shifts in tone are also helped along significantly by the main quartet of actors, all of whom give performances that we would call “standout”, except for the fact that they’re basically the only people in the entire film with dialogue. The size of the cast helps create a distinct sense of unease and claustrophobia, which lends itself well to the murkier parts of the film, but it also gives the actors time to really shine.
Skarsgård’s and Monroe’s Mickey and Jules feel believable in their ineptitude — like they’re a couple you knew in high school that got a little too into drugs and suddenly found themselves diving off of the deep end. Although it might be easy for the duo to come across as hateable “please kill them off as quickly as possible” horror tropes, the performances given make the very best of a strong script. Skarsgård is empathetic and at times emotional, while still being dynamic and entertaining. Monroe also gives a performance in the same vein, and although she may not have quite the star power that he does, she still matches him blow for blow.
The other couple, George (Donovan) and Gloria (Sedgwick), is the undeniably more sinister of the two pairs. It’s a clever subversion of expectations that the older, more wholesome couple fighting of young druggie intruders are actually the psychopaths, and both Donovan and Sedgwick knock their roles out of the park. George is the mastermind of the entire operation, and his terrifying maliciousness is gleefully offset by a charming southern accent and a wardrobe that consists almost entirely of khaki pants and button-up cardigans.
His southern belle of a wife is Gloria, a clearly mentally unhinged woman who is presented as insane and almost perverted, but over the course of the film, she becomes much more empathetic. If we had to pick the strongest performance out of the four, we’d give it to Sedgwick. Her portrayal of Gloria goes beyond insane and becomes pathetic and decidedly tragic at the end of the film.
However, as great as the performances are — and as funny as the dialogue is —Villains isn’t quite as entertaining or engrossing as we’d hoped. Though we imagine the filmmakers were trying to build tension with the pacing, it just ends up feeling slow, especially after a fast-paced first act. The middle in particular really does drag on, but the ending is strong enough (if not a little tidy) to make you want to stick around until it’s through. Although it doesn’t quite realize the potential insanity that is frequently hinted at, Villains is still a bizarre and refreshing outing to the movies that will leave you satisfied if you’re looking for a break from summer blockbusters.
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