Widows (Steve McQueen)

[Ivan Drago]

Does it have the same aesthetic as Shame, Hunger and 12 Years A Slave? Long takes, minimal music and reliance on diegetic sound?

[Henry Gale]

Does it have the same aesthetic as Shame, Hunger and 12 Years A Slave? Long takes, minimal music and reliance on diegetic sound?

Yes and no. It sits largely in a more conventional thriller style, but McQueen still manages some unmistakably signature long takes still squeezed into the pace of it on those terms. But even within that more familiar/mainstream speed and editing on the surface, the subversion largely comes with the unique political, capitalist, and social story elements and themes that he's clearly most interested in being what comes through most sharply.

Hunger, Shame and 12 Years A Slave are all very clearly make up a more uniformly arthouse, deliberately leisured trilogy in their framework and ambition. There is a kinetic feel to everything here, with a modern Zimmer score and even contemporary music choices here and there, but it's all still very clearly through the filter of McQueen's sensibilities. I wouldn't be able to describe his last three films as crowdpleasers that would elicit hollering, laughs, gasps, and applause, but to see him concoct that here (with all the same sort of dramatic and thematic weight he's known for) is its own sort of exciting venture for him.

I now know that a Steven McQueen film with gags is a no less impactful one.

[Ivan Drago]

I now know that a Steven McQueen film with gags is a no less impactful one.

True fucking story. He depicts the current state of the country in every avenue, from conflicts in politics and racial tension to class struggles and feminine anxieties with pure authenticity in a crowdpleasing genre film, and does so without being too preachy while retaining his artistic insight. The cinematography is gorgeous to look at as are the locations oozing with upscale decadence, the editing creates a pace that's fast and engaging, and the performances are tremendous from the entire ensemble.

I already can't wait to see it again and unpack all the ideas and motifs, but on first watch, I'm confident in saying that McQueen and Flynn together have created something truly tremendous.