'Lou' A Review

Lou is an action/thriller set in 1986 on an island off the coast of Washington. Lou(Allison Janney) is the mysterious landlord with a particular set of skills who, when her tenant Hannah's(Jurnee Smollett) daughter is kidnapped by her presumed dead father(Logan Marshall-Green), sets off with her to get her back.

It's great to see Janney as a grizzled bad ass, a delight in fact, and she totally inhabits it. Smollett does well but her character, as written, frequently strains credulity. Marshall-Green is always intriguing and he brings his particular blend of leading man charm and creepiness to the villian role. All in all the three are solid, of the supporting cast there are few and don't make too much of an impact.

The production has value, visually- although taking place mostly in darkness and rain- has a decent clarity, the fight scenes and action sequences have punch(although there are not enough of them), the real issue is the script and pacing. There's a tension in the movie with what it wants/intends to be, is it Taken starring Janney? If so there's not enough of Janney putting bad guys in the dirt. Is it some kind of psychological familial espionage investigation? If so it's not smart enough. It has a lot going for it it just doesn't quite come together.

Worth a watch for Janney kicking ass, everything else is relatively meh.

Currently streaming on Netflix.

Stream It.