Destroyer | Film Review

Hey Guys x

If I'm remembering rightly, this film came out at the beginning of the year, which is peak Oscar time, so like many other films, I didn't get to see this until recently. However, I have finally seen it, and I'm so glad I have!

Cop Erin Bell (Nicole Kidman) goes on an undercover mission that nearly destroys her. Now, years later, the consequences of her actions are still weighing her down. But when the man who took everything from her comes back into her life, she has to find him and exact revenge - whatever it takes.

I loved this movie. I loved it so much that I still get excited when I remember it.

For a start, it's the kind of story that sucks you in right away. From the first scene. you find yourself invested in this story, or more specifically, in the character of Erin Bell. But I'll talk more about her later.

But just in general, the film has a really interesting set of 3 dimensional characters. No one is 100% bad or good, and those are the best types of movies. I mean, good vs evil is a classic trope, but a film where all the characters are kind of murky grey is so entertaining!

It's definitely a twist on the usual police drama - extremely original plot and characters. Usually in a movie like this you're either completely on the side of the cops or completely against them, but with this you keep all the characters at arm's length.

It's rare in a story that relies so heavily on flashbacks for the audience to be as invested in the main plot as they are in the flashbacks, but this film sets everything up in such a way that you really do care about all facets of this story equally.

Now we have to talk about the main character, Erin Bell. Nicole Kidman is amazing. This is the type of role that she isn't necessarily known for, but she carried it out amazingly well. The entirety of the film rests on her shoulders and lives or dies based on Kidman's performance, and she is one of the reasons why the film is as great as it was.
The character of Erin Bell is a great one, because as I've mentioned before, she's not straightforward or black-and-white. Whether you're on her side or not, you have no idea how far she's willing to go, and you never know if you can quite trust her.

But in addition to Kidman, the entire cast was amazing. Tatiana Maslany was outstanding, and Tony Kebbell and Sebastian Stan were up there with Kidman as actors who needed to be amazing in order for the film to be as good as it was, and they completely were. There wasn't a bad actor in the group.

Throughout the movie, important details are expertly teased to keep the audience on edge the whole time.

And then there's the ending. It cleared up any unexplained plot points and tied everything up perfectly.

Overall, definitely see this film if you get the chance. I can't wait to watch it again!

8/10

Lou