A One Mann’s Movies review of “I Care a Lot” (2021).
Bob the Movie Man’s Rating:
Plot Summary:
Maria Grayson (Rosamund Pike) and her colleague-cum-lover Fran (Eiza González) are running an extensive con. Through the manipulation of the Boston legal and medical systems, Maria arranges to be appointed the legal guardian for numerous older people. Packing them away to a drugged up life in a care home, the pair then plunder the estates of their wards, turning a tidy profit. The weatlhy and unattached Jennifer Peterson (Dianne Wiest) appears to be a “cherry” that can take their fortunes to a completely different level. But all is not as it seems, and Maria and Fran’s evil but comfortable lives are about to be turned on their heads.
Fran (Eiza González) and Maria (Rosamund Pike) escort Mrs Peterson (Dianne Wiest) into the care home (Source: Netflix)
Certification:
Talent:
Starring: Rosamund Pike, Eiza González, Peter Dinklage, Dianne Wiest.
Directed by: J Blakeson.
Written by: J Blakeson.
Roman (Peter Dinklage) and Maria Rosamund Pike) have a face to face. (Source: Netflix).
Review:
Positives:
- When I say the comedy is inky black, I mean it. It’s unusual to find a movie without a single character that you can relate to or even remotely like. For some reason, it reminded me of the Michael Douglas / Kathleen Turner vehicle “The War of the Roses” in that regard. And yet, once you let the evilness of it sink in, it becomes a rip-roaring story that delights to the very end.
- Rosamund Pike delivers yet again another superb performance, making Maria an icy cold villain. The role could be summed up as “What Gone Girl did next”.
- Peter Dinklage delights in portraying an evil character which, for reasons of spoiler avoidance, I shall say nothing further about. But it’s a cracking performance and brilliant to see a script that steadfastly ignores his physical characteristics.
- Dianne Wiest (“The Mule”) and Eiza González (“the sexy one” from “Baby Driver”) also deliver strong supporting roles.
- J Blakeson – who did “The Disappearance of Alice Creed” – directs with style, and hopefully his truly novel screenplay will be suitably recognised through awards. There are some clever twists: one near the end which (Smug McSmuggerson from the University of Smugchester) I saw coming, and another one soon after that I didn’t!
- Mark Canham – not a composer I know – delivers a really engaging and bouncy score that’s top notch. Loved it.
Maria (Rosamund Pike) reviews a wall-full of her charges. (Source: Netflix).
Negatives:
- The plot is just SO inky black at the beginning, that some may get through the first 15 minutes and think “Nope, not for me”. That was certainly the view of the illustrious Mrs Movie Man. But she stuck with it, and so should you: after Peter Dinklage appears, the movie shifts up a gear and changes in tone.
- The plot occasionally stretches credibility beyond breaking point. In particular, all the characters seem to be wholly incompetent at ‘dispatching people’ when they have the opportunity to do so. The repetition of these failures I found to be a bit tiresome.
Summary:
Finding a movie with a novel storyline is an unusual thing these days, and one that combines that with a taut and engrossing screenplay is a gem indeed. It’s probably not one recommended for very elderly people to watch…. then again, perhaps with so many evil scammers around in real life, it might be considered required viewing! But, if you have one, you’ll probably want to have a chat with your granny after watching this.
Trailer:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fu6LX4Ieasg.
