A review of the new movie “Babygirl”
This is such a watchable film: glitzy (smart clothes, cutting-edge technology, pounding soundtrack) and erotic (solo sex, marital sex, transgressive sex). It is also such an interesting film, raising so many issues around relationships: age-inappropriateness, power and powerlessness, domination and submission.
I was struck by the number of young women at the screening I attended and I can understand why, since this is a movie that unusually adopts the female gaze and poses the kind of questions more usually in the minds of women: what is the role of fantasy in female desire? how acceptable is the orgasm gap? how does one move from faking it to making it?
Such a film could only be made by a woman and it comes – pardon the pun – from Dutch former actress Halina Reijn who wrote, directed and produced it. And the movie would only work with the right lead actors.
We are used to Nicole Kidman taking risks in her thespian roles and here she is simply wonderful as Romy, CEO of a high tech company who seemingly has it all in career and family terms. The revelation is Harris Dickinson (no jokes about his surname please) who is so convincing as Samuel, the young intern at the company who insists that Romy be his mentor. But who is teaching whom and who is consenting to what?
Throw in Antonio Banderas as Romy’s confused husband and Sophie Wilde as Romy’s ambitious aide and you have the perfect date movie. Just be ready for the conversations that follow.