There are bad movies, then there are ones that just defy reasoning. The newest film by writer and director Steven Knight, best known for Locke and Eastern Promises, has delivered an experience that will certainly be remembered for being “One of the Worst Movies of 2019.” The actors involved in this project are well-known and even their star power can’t save this debacle of sheer shock and horror. I have to be honest here, this is a terrible film that robs audiences of their time and money in the cruelest of ways.
We begin our story with Baker Hill (Matthew McConaughey) who lives on Plymouth Island. It’s located in the middle of nowhere and the community is very small. Baker spends his days out on the water looking for a fabled tuna that’s quite massive. He works with Duke (Djimon Hounsou) on his fishing expeditions. He also provides tourists a chance to fish off his boat. When he’s not fishing, he’s pimping himself out to Constance (Diane Lane). I’m not making this up!
When Karen (Anne Hathaway) arrives on the island and finds Baker, their past comes back to haunt them! They used to be married and have child together. Baker hasn’t seen his son in years and Karen pleads with Baker for help. Her husband Frank (Jason Clarke) has physically abused her while also being verbally and psychologically abusing her son. Her plan is for Baker to take Frank fishing, get him drunk and toss him overboard where the sharks will be waiting for him.
Now, you’re probably thinking that this could be the start of a compelling and engaging thriller. Well, you would be wrong and it’s painful to say. The plot leading up to the climax is so slow. The actors seem lost in their character’s motivations and don’t seem to understand what is going on. Baker is a man who seems angry at the world and the script doesn’t have time to closely analyze its characters at all. This movie has a plot twist, which I’m sure you’ve heard about already, and it relies too much on it to be effective.
I love how this small community seems to know everything about Baker’s life, his ex-wife’s plans and they even know when the husband is due to arrive on the island! How do they know this!? I also love the character of Reid Miller (Jeremy Strong) who spends his time wearing a suit, running around with a briefcase and screaming to talk to Baker only to miss him at the last second. I wonder what Steven Knight told his cast to do when he said, “Action!”
I will say this though, if you’re looking for sex and McConaughey’s butt, then this movie provides! Sure, the plot is not there but there’s plenty of skin to go around. The sex scenes are boring to watch and provide no passion whatsoever. Heck, Diane Lane has it easy. She sleeps with Baker, watches him from her window and waits for him to arrive back on the dock. Wow, what a cool character you’ve created Mr. Knight!
Verdict 0 out of 5
It’s shocking to see such a talented cast being trapped in a movie that doesn’t have a coherent plot, is lacking any form of suspense and an ending that is sure to piss off any movie-goer that sees this movie. It’s simple, this movie is hoping to be a success for the cast and people often to fall for this. The ending is so cheap, so old and such an insult to the audience that it amounts to a loss of nearly two hours of people’s lives in order to give them nothing in return. The actors are lost, the script is lame and everyone involved in this movie should be ashamed of themselves. This is such a waste of time. Avoid seeing this at all costs. It’s not even worth a free ticket!
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