Review: Last Night in Soho
Last Night in Soho, directed by Edgar Wright, tells the tale of Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie), an aspiring fashion designer who gets accepted into London’s most prestigious fashion school. She moves into the big city and after finding dorm life to not be so pleasing, Eloise decides to move into an old bedsit where every night she miraculously relives the 1960’s through the eyes of an aspiring singer named Sandie (Anya Taylor-Joy). But as she partakes in Sandie’s life, Eloise slowly finds her dreams turn into nightmares as the dark realities of Sandie’s life start making its way into Eloise’s life.
Edgar Wright’s films are by far one of the most visually distinctive today. If you’ve seen just one of his films before like Baby Driver, Scott Pilgrim, or any one of The Three Flavour Cornetto Trilogy, then you can almost immediately tell you’re watching a Wright film, and this film is no different. Wright’s latest film, a spin on the thriller/horror franchise, is brimming with personality and showcases the filmmaker’s mastery in his craft, even when the end product is a lot more problematic than usual.
A lot of what makes Edgar Wright films appealing to everyone is on full display here. The visual aesthetic is incredibly distinctive and striking; you can see the love put into each setting with its detailed backgrounds and clever use of lighting. All the performances here are great; both Thomasin McKenzie and Anya Taylor-Joy were fantastic to watch as usual. On a side note this film is also the final on-screen performance from the late Diana Rigg who passed away last year, and this is quite the performance to go out on. The film’s soundtrack was also great; as with his previous films Wright’s clever and prominent use of music is a highlight for this film.
If I were to rate this film purely on the technical aspect this would be a perfect 10/10, but when I rate films I take into account everything about it, not just the visuals and filmmaking techniques but also the plot and writing, and unfortunately the latter is what this film ultimately struggles on. The story’s setup is very supernatural, it has all the hallmarks for a solid horror film, but the film struggles to justify its premise as we get deeper into the story. It’s a murder mystery with ghosts but once the mystery is revealed you ask yourself what was the point of having ghosts in the story as that aspect of the film could’ve been taken out and it really wouldn’t have made a difference.
Overall this was one of Wright’s weaker films for sure, but it’s still entertaining as heck. Just the sheer playfulness in Wright’s visual style is enough to check this out on the big screen, especially if you’re new to this filmmaker’s filmography. People who value substance over style will probably leave the theater disappointed, but to everyone else this is a fun ride you should definitely check out.
Final Verdict: 7/10