Magpie

By far the best aspect of taut little British psychological drama "Magpie" is its cracking lead performance from Daisy Ridley as a doormat wife trampled on by narcissist hubbie Shazad Latif as she edges towards insanity in their beautiful yet remote country home. Things come to a head when young daughter Hiba Ahmed is cast in a film shooting nearby, where Latif gets drawn to captivating lead actress Matilda Lutz (rising star)... but how will Ridley react? Sam Yates' direction's fine, Tom Bateman's debut screenplay's neat enough (albeit with holes), and the support cast's solid - but the big fish here is unquestionably Ridley. A terrific actress, so strong again.

This film centres on married couple Annette (Daisy Ridley) and Ben (Shazad Latif), whose daughter Matilda (Hiba Ahmed) is cast alongside a glamorous movie star, Alicia Romano (Matilda Lutz). As the days go by Annette's suspicions are raised about the relationship between Ben and Alicia, and as Ben's relationship with with Alicia becomes deeper and deeper, Annette can't follow what is happening as Ben has begun locking his phone. But perhaps Annette is more devious than Ben realises... This is a really nicely done thriller. I'm not a great fan of Ridley, but she plays the sidelined wife really well and I truly felt her pain as her husband's relationship with the actress developed. There was something slightly off right from the start, but of all the things it could have been, I never once suspected what it really was. It's not until the end scenes that we get the full picture but no spoilers here, I want you to enjoy the ride!

The music was odd at times, the score was very rasping and didn't always fit the scene. There were some mildly silly plot points but nothing to spoil the film at all. I was saddened by yet another DEI casting. It seems like we must have an interracial relationship in every film we see these days, a far greater proportion than exists in real life, which means I can't always relate well to the cast. However Latif puts in a good performance and I always felt there was a brooding menace from him, which helped the tension throughout. All in all it's not a groundbreaking film but it's certainly a worthwhile thriller that everyone will enjoy, not just misandrists. I rated it a healthy 6.

This movie was okay, but definitely not Daisy's best. The film follows Annette, a woman who appears to be suffering from postpartum depression. When her daughter gets a role in a movie, Annette is left home with the baby while her husband Ben takes her to the set. On set, Ben meets Alice, a famous actor, and quickly finds himself falling for her, only for Annette's mental health to continue to spiral.

Overall, it was an entertaining enough movie. The script definitely needed a little more work. None of the characters are particularly likable. However, Annette does get some sympathy points for her husband wanting to cheat on her because she is sad. Daisy does an excellent job of being the unhinged, crazy, suspicious wife. I think they could have explored her character a bit more. It's also like they couldn't decide if they wanted Annette to be the villain or not. The ending was also pretty predictable. However, they did a couple of things to throw the viewer off, making some plot holes when you stop to think about it. If I had to summarize it, it feels like something is missing somewhere. If you're looking for Daisy Ridley movies, I'd recommend Young Woman and the Sea or The Marsh King's Daughter first. However, if you've seen those, this wasn't bad; it just felt incomplete.

Thank you Daisy for the original idea.

As a lonely housewife myself who has been cheated on and given up my own life for my husband, I really related to this movie. Daisy managed to capture anxiety, depression, PTSD and spite all in one character. I've been her and I know how awful it is and how manic you feel.

You're never totally sure if you should pity Annette or root for or be disgusted by her, until the end. At first it's not entirely obvious that the story is even about her. The portrayal of her husband is properly fleshed out and amazingly nuanced considering what sort of characters men are given these days. They are often too simplistic and vapid. This movie did a pretty good job of writing believable people while entertaining and surprising me. I almost felt as though whoever wrote the ending took a piece of my life and put it into a movie. We're not crazy, we're just reviving ourselves.

More movies like this, please.

I just finished watching this and it kept my interest. You sort of new there was a build up in this movie but the writers kept it hidden pretty good. Since you were always waiting for the climax this thriller did its job pretty good. It does play to certain stereotypes of husbands and wife's. It is a bit unusual to see a movie breaking out of the liberal movement of 2024.

This is a great couples movie and it does not disappoint. Definitely a conversation starter after watching this. Which the junkyard of movies coming out of Hollywood this one is brave enough to go out into left field. Put this movie near the top of your list.