Reviewed by Colin Jacobson (February 15, 2024)
At some point over the decades, “Hitchcock” became a distinct genre as well as the filmmaker’s name. For a recent effort in that vein, we go to 2023’s Eileen.
Set in New England circa the early 1960s, 24-year-old Eileen Dunlop (Thomasin McKenzie) works as a secretary at a detention center for teen boys. Sexually repressed, she engages in multiple fantasies but leads no form of romantic relationships as she deals with alcoholic and abusive father Jim (Shea Whigham), a former cop who suffers from PTSD and other issues.
When vibrant new prison psychologist Rebecca Saint John (Anne Hathaway) joins the staff, Eileen’s life takes a turn. This leads Eileen to blossom in some ways but she exhibits a potentially disturbing fascination with Rebecca.
In other words: Single White Female? Not exactly, but yeah – the two share more than a few similarities, mainly via the way Eileen comes to idealize/emulate Rebecca.
We definitely see that aforementioned Hitchcock sensibility as well, mainly via the way Eileen explores obsession. We can observe echoes of films like Vertigo here as well as other Hitchcock efforts.
However, don’t expect an obvious Hitchcock homage/rip-off from Eileen. Whereas it comes with those overtones, it feels more like a period thriller than a Hitch-specific take much of the time.
Indeed, director William Oldroyd goes out of his way to make Eileen look and feel like a product of the era in which the story takes place. From a quirky 1.65:1 ratio to visuals that feel “period”, Eileen largely attempts a retro vibe.
This can feel a bit clever-clever – and as I’ll note during the technical portions of this review, Oldroyd makes some perplexing concessions to modern cinema via a very 21st century palette. Still, Oldroyd manages to give the film an unusual feel that echoes its period fairly well, albeit without the censorship that would come with a movie actually made in the early 1960s.
Because of this, Eileen occasionally threatens to come across more as a cinematic experiment than a full-fledged film. However, it delivers enough intrigue to make it fairly compelling, if not wholly satisfying.
Surprisingly, the retro contrivances don’t become into a negative aspect of the film. As mentioned, a flick like this could easily turn too self-conscious for its own good, but Eileen manages to integrate those elements largely seamlessly.
Eileen loses some points due to a semi-derivative feel, however, as it doesn’t find a lot of new ground to cover. We’ve just seen too many films in which a mousy character meets a vibrant person and obsession/issues result.
Not that this means Eileen follows a completely predictable/trite path. It comes with some twists along the way and an admirably loose conclusion.
Still, a lot of Eileen’s evolution will feel familiar, especially because Oldroyd follows Hollywood tradition in terms of casting. The film probably should feature an actor of average looks as its title character.
Thomasin doesn’t fit that bill so she seems much more attractive than she should to play the theoretically dumpy Eileen. Sure, they attempt to frump her up and make her less lovely than she is, but it doesn’t work, so Eileen always feels a lot better looking than she should.
Granted, the stylistic choices do allow Rebecca to seem substantially more glamorous than the plain Eileen, and Hathaway gives the former a lot of verve. Still, I can’t help but feel an actor less pretty than McKenzie would better fit the role.
Not that this means McKenzie offers a poor performance, of course, as she does more than fine in the role. She pulls off Eileen’s sense of frustration – sexual and otherwise – and also manages the slightly unhinged vibe the role needs without overdoing it.
I do think McKenzie can feel too young for the part, though. She was 21 during the shoot, and we learn Eileen is 24.
No, that doesn’t become a major difference, but McKenzie comes across more like a teenager than a woman in her mid-20s. Perhaps Oldroyd wanted that sense of youthfulness but I don’t think it makes a lot of sense, especially because McKenzie’s adolescent appearance means I find it more difficult to accept how beaten down by life Eileen’s become.
Hathaway gets the showier part but also one that lacks the same room for growth. She gives Rebecca the necessary spirit but also doesn’t overplay her sauciness, so she manages to keep the role believable.
Despite some quibbles about the ways in which I don’t think McKenzie fits the role, I do like Eileen - mostly. It doesn’t create a great thriller but it forms a twisty enough tale to largely keep us with it.
