Last Night in Soho

I've been a fan of Edgar Wright as a filmmaker ever since I first saw Shaun of the Dead way back when it was first released and my love for his work has only grown with each subsequent film he's made. Naturally, I was looking forward to seeing his latest, Last Night in Soho. However, I went in to this having only seen the first trailer and knew nothing else about the film beyond that. I had only a vague idea of the plot and nothing else and while I intend to fully review the film below, I will say if you are already interested in the film, just go. I went in pretty much blind and had a great time with this one. I fully believe that would be the best way to watch this one.

Ellie Turner (played by Thomasin McKenzie) is an aspiring fashion designer who loves the culture and music of the 1960s. She is also able to see ghosts, especially her recently deceased mother. She has just moved from her countryside home she shared with her grandmother, Peggy (played by Rita Tushingham) to the West Side of London to attend the prestigious London College of Fashion. When she finds herself paired with an obnoxious roommate in the college dorms, she moves out and finds an affordable bedsit in a building owned by the elderly Ms. Collins (played by Diana Rigg). That night, as she sleeps she has a vivid dream where she is transported back to 1960s London and observes as a young aspiring singer, Sandie (played by Anya Taylor-Joy) inquires about becoming a singer at a popular club and in the process meets manager Jack (played by Matt Smith). She awakes the next morning feeling inspired and begins creating a dress inspired by the one Sandie wore in her dream. As she continues to dream, Ellie begins to recognize places in real life that she had only dreamt of previously. She realizes that her dreams are not just dreams but visions of the distant past and as the dreams take a darker turn, she becomes more obsessed with finding out what happened to Sandie, who it turns out had lived at one time in the same bedsit she did. 

The film was directed by Edgar Wright from a script he co-wrote with Krysty Wilson-Cairns. Together, they crafted a very unique ghost story that was refreshingly unlike anything I had seen before. Edgar Wright and his crew bring the mid-Sixties London to life in brilliant color with an incredible soundtrack to back it up. Wright and Wilson Cairns were clearly pulling from the horror and thriller films of the era with the sort of dream-like visual palette that recalls the best Italian Giallo films. I loved the way used mirrors to show how Ellie was experiencing what Sandie was throughout each of her dreams, where we would see Sandie, but the reflection would be Ellie. It's a neat trick the re-occurs throughout the film and shows just how connected the two are across time. There also some impressive single takes where Edgar alternates between Anya Taylor-Joy and Thomasin McKenzie as Sandie throughout a single sequence that had to be a challenge to pull of, but was quite visually impressive. Wright and Wilson-Cairns also take the time to really focus on the struggles of their two lead female protagonists go through in a very real and tangible way that is relatable and at times terrifying in a very real way. By taking the time to do this, I felt more connected to them and more invested in what happened to them. I also appreciated the way they built the mystery inherent in the film and it was only when I got to the end that I saw all the pieces that had been there from the beginning start to come together. I love it when a movie can keep me guessing until he very end. The film includes a lot of familiar plot elements that recur throughout Edgar Wright's films, but in a very different and much more serious way with this film. It is a different film than he usually makes and I was thrilled to see a new side of him as a filmmaker.  

The film has an impressive cast led by Thomasin McKenzie and Anya Taylor-Joy. Thomasin McKenzie does a fantastic job as Ellie, who at the start of the film is filled with excitement and wonder at starting college and traveling to London, but as her character starts connecting with Sandie in the past her character begins to become more and more obsessed, especially when she begins to suspect something bad happened to Sandie and needs to find out what happened. McKenzie does a great job capturing her character's emotional change throughout the film as she begins to unravel as bit as her visions of the past start to become too much for her. Anya Taylor-Joy is equally great as Sandie, who is a counterpoint of sorts to Ellie, who likewise traveled to London to make her own dreams of being a singer come true and was prepared to do what it took to make those dreams come true. She does a great job not only portraying Sandie's ambition, but also the toll the darker side of London takes on her. Matt Smith, who I will probably always know best as the Eleventh Doctor, does well as the shady manager Jack. It was fun to see him play a character to far removed from his usual type and someone who may be a bit of a bastard. Diana Rigg has a good supporting role as the landlord of Ellie's bedsit. She's strict, but what she does is in what she believes is the best interests of her tenants. Terrance Stamp has an intriguing supporting role as a frequent patron at the local pub who may or may not have had a connection to Sadie in the past. 

Overall, Last Night in Soho is a very unique ghost story that in anchored by a compelling mystery. It's very well written and kept be guessing from beginning to end, which is always good for a movie like this. It's backed with some stunning cinematography and, as can be expected with any Edgar Wright film, a fantastic soundtrack. I really enjoyed this one and it is easily one of my favorites of the year so far.