Don't Worry Darling (EXCLUSIVE SERIES) (HBO MAX)
- Matt Palmer
- Jan 10, 2023
- 3 min read
Studios: Warner Brothers/New Line Cinema/Vertigo Entertainment
Tagline: Are you ready to live the life you deserve?
Plot: In the 1950s, Alice and Jack live in the idealized community of Victory, an experimental company town that houses then men who work on a top secret project. While the husbands toil away, the wives get to enjoy the beauty, luxury and debauchery of their seemingly perfect paradise. However, when cracks in her idyllic life begins to appear, exposing flashes of something sinister lurking below the surface, Alice can't help but question exactly what she's doing in Victory.
Cast
Florence Pugh - Alice
Harry Styles - Jack
Chris Pine - Frank
Olivia Wilde - Bunny
Kiki Layne - Margaret
Gemma Chan - Shelley
Nick Kroll - Dean
Sydney Chandler - Violet
Kate Berlant - Peg
Asif Ali - Peter
Writer: Katie Silberman (Booksmart; Isn't It Romantic)
Director: Olivia Wilde (Booksmart)
Rated R for sexuality, violent content and language (128 minutes)
A couple nights ago, I finally had the chance to check out 'Don't Worry Darling.' When this 2022 movie was initially released in September, I didn't get a chance to see it. And, now that it's been streaming on HBO Max, I decided to check it out.
For a good portion of the movie, there is a good amount of intrigue and mystery. There are quite a few moments throughout the movie that have an eerie feel to it. Florence Pugh's character (Alice) starts seeing things that are also very weird and eerie at times. Throughout the course of the movie, you slowly begin to wonder if she's really seeing things or just going crazy.
Speaking of Pugh, the actress does a fantastic job in this movie and helps carry it. The movie's story can be rather interesting, yet when the big reveal takes place, it kind of loses momentum just a bit. I won't be going into spoiler territory here just in case you haven't had the chance to see the movie. 'Don't Worry Darling' might be one of those movies that I may have to watch a second time for the main reveal to make sense. Unless I missed something during the initial watch ...
You can stream 'Don't Worry Darling' on HBO Max and various PVOD services.
Here are some interesting tidbits for 'Don't Worry Darling':
The hilltop headquarters for the Victory Corporation is the iconic "volcano house" in the Mojave Desert community of Newberry Springs, CA. The house was owned by PBS TV personality Huell Howser, who donated the house to Chapman University in 2012 shortly before his death.
Olivia Wilde originally wanted to play the lead role, but she cast Florence Pugh after seeing her in 'Midsommar.'
The film was announced in August 2019 after a bidding war among 18 studios to acquire the next Olivia Wilde-directed project.
According to Wilde, the character Frank was inspired by psychologist and author Jordan Peterson, whom she described as "a pseudo-intellectual hero to the incel community."
There were several alleged on-set conflicts between Wilde, Pugh and a few others.
At the Cinema Con 2022 for the stage at Caesar's Palace, Wilde confirmed that the idea of the film was inspired by 'Inception,' 'The Matrix' and 'The Truman Show.'
It was theatrically released on September 23, 2022. The film was released for VOD on October 25. It began streaming to subscribers on HBO Max on November 7, 2022. Over its first week of streaming, it was watched in 2.7 million households.
'Don't Worry Darling' has grossed $45.3 million domestic, and $41.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $86.7 million.
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