McAdams is one of our great movie stars, her presence, authenticity, and versatility just grows with age and that is very apparent here. She's having a ball and giving this character all different kinds of dimensions- menace, humor, pathos- the whole gambit. In one pretty incredible solo sequence on the island she discovers a waterfall and baths, notices her skin glowing and hair shiny, she's transformed from her beaten down office drudgery into the woman she's always wanted to be. McAdams just conveys this ocean of history and subtext with an effortlessness that's just stupendous to watch. And O'Brien is good too! Out of all the crowded Hollywood leading-men hopefuls O'Brien is actually one I can get behind. He's got talent and good lucks but also a grounded approachability and naturalism that for my money puts him head and shoulders above the Austin Butlers and the Chalamets. And the two have magnetic chemistry. The support cast is limited, it's basically a two-hander, and as such a real pleasure just to watch McAdams and O'Brien work off each other.
Visually the film is relatively simple yet evocative with a couple pretty spectacular gore set pieces and judicious use of CGI. The score is subtle and effective, overall the production design is focused, effective, if not particularly flashy(which given the budget, works perfect). The film somewhat stumbles in the third act but the journey is fun enough it doesn't particularly matter. A near perfect January release, a welcome piece of well-done dimensional entertainment to offset the long shadow of overly serious 2025 awards flicks still in theaters.
McAdams for the win.
Currently in theaters.
See It.
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