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There has been a narrative of sorts about the new Prime Video movie. Hedda it is simply a salty burnRetelling in the style of Henrik Ibsen's classic work. Hedda Gablerbut that doesn't even remotely do it justice. Those who think gender-swapped characters and LGBTQIA+ romance are the coolest things aren't digging deep enough.
If there's anyone who knows anything about sapphic movies, it's me. I report on them whenever I can, and if I don't, I've probably worked Carol, Ammonite either Tied in conversation. I will confess that Hedda It caught my attention because of Nina Hoss, who played Cate Blanchett's fictional wife in Tar – but I didn't know the pleasure that awaited me.
Of course this movie isn't perfect. Considering how messed up Hedda is as a solo character, it was never going to be like this. But there's no doubt that this is the strongest entry in director Nia DaCosta's work to date. He received an unjustified amount of criticism for the wonders and the 2021 version of The candy manand I hope the same thing doesn't happen here.
We almost need to read between the lines to fully see the brilliance of what Hedda has to offer, and that's half the fun. A friend described it to me as a crime novel where you already know who the killer is (instead you look for the motive), and I think that's a fair assessment.
He's sexy, loud, and as wild as you'd expect him to be, but he's also controlled and backs down when necessary. When it comes to creating a memorable dinner, that's exactly the balance of tension you're looking for.
Hedda is more than sex and scandal: she is a moving mirror
Look
If you're not familiar with Ibsen's original story, here's what we're dealing with: Hedda (Tessa Thompson) is an unhappy newlywed who feels like she's being prevented from being herself. When her husband George (Tom Bateman) wants a new position at work, Hedda decides to throw an extravagant party so George can invite the boss, Professor Greenwood (Finbar Lynch), and try to close the deal.
During the night, George's rival Eileen (Hoss) arrives to poach Professor Greenwood for the same role, causing the group to descend into chaotic chaos. Thea (Imogen Poots), Eileen's writing partner and lover, tries to keep her on track, but Hedda takes her meddling too far.
The most satisfying part of Hedda is the ease with which DaCosta pulls off dangerous power-play dynamics between women, with the male world around them becoming peripheral in the process. Thompson's Hedda is not a woman you like, or who even seems to consciously know what she wants.
She acts on impulse and everyone around her feels the consequences of the decisions she makes. This means an incredible dinner for us, bringing long-buried tensions and traumas to the surface, where they explode on whoever is nearby. It's usually Eileen and Thea, and boy is their romantic triangle complex.
Where the structure fails, the plaster supports it
The core structure of Hedda It's not playing the shock factor like salty burnand arguably it could have gone into a lot more depth and use of the intimacy and pure romance between the three women. But even with these small flaws, our cast offers something that amazes.
While Thompson's accent is…interesting in the Prime Video film, his conviction and common sense cannot be faulted. It's not easy to make us completely lack empathy for a character and at the same time make him likable, and she maintains the balance throughout. Poots plays an effective foil as the anxious Thea, calling out Hedda's manipulation as if she were shouting into the wind.
For me, it's Hoss who plays the movie. There is an exceptional scene after Eileen gets drunk and swims in the lake, entering the room to talk to her male rivals while her dress is wet and see-through. He tells explicit stories in full form, and when he has them metaphorically eating out of his hand, the dress is dry.
This is the level of detail worth paying attention to, making the overall effect of Hedda As rich as a sumptuous cake, caressing every possible detail of humanity to serve an ugly truth worth devouring. It's hard to make hateful people attractive, but we love watching it when it works (which is why reality TV is so popular).
Without giving anything away, DaCosta also changes the ending of Ibsen's play. With a simple tweak, eliminate sapphic media stereotypes that Hedda He could have easily been a victim, and that alone is a fantastic way to sum up what he's accomplished.
We're all tired of the classics being adapted, but when they reflect who we've become and what we're so expertly capable of, who are we to look the other way?
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