Director Steve McQueen is known for telling dark and dynamic stories, and Widows isn’t any different. This time he puts four women in the driving seat and allows them to peel away the layers of their very different, yet all too familiar, stories. Here are Four things to know before you see Widows.
1. Steve McQueen is best known for 12 Years A Slave, or if you’re really into dark films, Shame starring Michael Fassbender (yes, Shame is the one with the full-frontal).
2. The cast is phenomenal. Viola Davis brings all the strength and gravitas to Widows as she does weekly on How To Get Away With Murder. Michelle Rodriquez is nuanced in a way that’s rarely scene from the Fast & Furious alum. Statuesque Elizabeth Debicki, whom many will recognize from Guardians fo the Galaxy 2 and The Night Manager, delivers a surprising vulnerability for a woman as towering as she is. And newcomer Cynthia Erivo, who just made appeared in Bad Times at the El Royale, is making a name for herself.
3. This heist film is more a political drama than caper.
4. The film is over 2 hours long, so prepare yourself accordingly. At times it does feel long, especially when the action is at a lull and the full weight of these widows is being laid on the audience, but these scenes are often sandwiched between action or suspense.
Widows opens everywhere Friday, November 16th.
–Yael Tygiel