Movie review: Don't Worry Darling

Harry Styles and Florence Pugh in Don't Worry Darling, in cinemas today.

One of the most talked about movies of the year – albeit for all the wrong reasons – finally hits theatres in New Zealand and although it proves to be a handsome effort, it ultimately feels smaller than all the gossip surrounding it.

In a planned desert community with 1950s trappings named Victory, Alice (Florence Pugh) and Jack (Harry Styles) live an idyllic existence. She is a carefree housewife, he works at the mysterious Victory Headquarters, where every man in town heads each morning.

When Jack begins to ascend the corporate ladder, he and Alice are brought further into Victory's inner circle, at the centre of which is charismatic Victory co-founder Frank (Chris Pine) and his wife Shelley (Gemma Chan).

Then one day after her regular shopping trip, Alice notices a plane spiralling out of control above Victory, but is unable to find it when she goes searching for the wreckage. After losing consciousness by Victory Headquarters, she wakes up back in her home. Although Jack reassures her, Alice begins to notice more and more strange things about Victory.

As the marketing for Don't Worry Darling (which should have a comma in it) promises there is something sinister about Victory, these developments don't exactly come as a surprise. But when you tell a story like this, it's imperative that you at least try to stay one step ahead of the viewer. And that requires incorporating expectations brought about by the history of these kinds of narratives.

Don't Worry Darling unfurls its twists as if it's the first story to ever have a twist – it's far too pleased with itself, and proudly stomps about like The Twilight Zone never existed. I'm a huge sucker for these kinds of high-concept, reality-warping stories, even the derivative ones, and I found myself consistently unimpressed with the revelations and their execution.

That said, Pugh is a magnetic presence who elevates the otherwise underwhelming proceedings considerably – she projects a vulnerable curiosity with a steely undercurrent. And although initial reactions might have you believe otherwise, Styles is fine, if not impressive.

The movie also perks up every time Pine is on screen, which doesn't happen enough. Especially during the latter third, when he should be front and centre.

The aesthetics of the film help keep it consumable as well – the 1950s pastels really pop, and there's a lot of cool mid-century architecture on display. So it's not a chore to sit through.

The film clearly wants to make salient points about patriarchal control and toxic/fragile masculinity, but they're undercut by the blunt storytelling and nonsensical denouement.

Don't Worry Darling may have been doomed by the disastrous PR surrounding the film, but it's also not a very well-told story.

Cast: Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, Chris Pine
Director: Olivia Wilde
Running time: 122 minutes
Rating: R13 (Violence, sex scenes, self-harm & offensive language)
Verdict: Nice to look at, but fatally lacking in original ideas.