“Don’t Worry Darling”, a new thriller directed by Olivia Wilde, centers around the seemingly perfect community of Victory, where devoted wives tend to the household while their husbands commute to a mysterious work facility. Featuring the acting talents of Florence Pugh, Chris Pine, Gemma Chan and Kiki Layne, this project seemed to be destined for greatness but, sadly, the predictable plot, underutilization of characters and Harry Styles’s terrible performance caused viewers to question their ticket purchase. 

Wilde does a fantastic job of constantly shoving the theme down the audience’s throats, treating spectators like they are unable to comprehend her overly-sophisticated plot. In reality, the storyline is boring at times and always predictable. Essentially a feminist version of George Orwell’s classic novel “1984”, the film desperately tries — but desperately fails — to be an artsy display of visionary directorial talent. Olivia, I get it, you do not have to remind me every thirty seconds that feminism is good, and men are bad.  

Pugh is one of the greatest acting talents of this century, and such mastery of her profession is demonstrated in the actor single-handedly carrying this film from beginning to end. Pine, Chan and Layne’s performances are also admirable but incredibly minimal, as they cumulatively account for approximately fifteen to twenty minutes of screen time in a terribly-paced two-hour movie. This leaves the audience to indulge in the not-so-great acting skills of Styles. 

Styles’ constant awkward swaying, questionable line delivery and hilarious facial expressions are indeed reminiscent of a middle school talent show performance. Fellow audience members and I could not help but laugh out loud at the absurdity of his actions, thus making this suspenseful thriller into a comedy at times. Harry, I would stick to singing if I were you. 

While “Don’t Worry Darling” is not the worst movie I have ever seen, it is certainly not the artistic social commentary that Wilde intended the audience to experience. My thoughts on “Don’t Worry Darling” are masterfully summarized by the one and only Styles, “the movie feels like a movie”. 

Film Score: 5/10