The 2024 British film The Wasp switches gears effortlessly proving that the sting is in the tale. Morgan Lloyd Malcolm adapted this screen play from the play she wrote. Guillem Morales directs the thriller and it stands to become my new favorite of 2024.
The Main Cast
Naomie Harris is Heather.
Natalie Dormer is Carla.
Dominic Allburn is Simon.
Olivia Juno Cleverley is young Carla.
Leah Mondesir-Simmonds is young Heather.
The story
In The Wasp, Heather is married to Simon. They are going through a long rocky patch. She tracks down an old schoolmate; Carla. She asks the old chum to kill her husband. Thus begins a rollercoaster ride of a tale. Murder, revenge and a large dollop of insanity.
It works
The Wasp, despite its brilliant shifting from one aspect to another, does feel like a stage play. It is rather dialogue heavy, in places, and suffers from quite a lot of exposition in the latter half. This is, however, necessary.
I love films that shift into another realm, or plotline. The Wasp starts out darkly into the world of paid killers. One woman approaches an on old school mate to kill her odious husband. Once they start to talk about the upcoming murder there is an immediate shift to the left.
Only in England
The twists that The Wasp take partially revolve around the English school system. Culturally they are different from this side of the pond. Children in the United Kingdom leave school at 16. English kids are both ahead of their American counterparts and slightly behind. Culturally, things are almost night and day in terms of contrasts.
*One sequence takes place at a school dance. At the school dance, girls are dancing with girls with the odd lad mixed in. This is normal. Later, when they are older, these same girls will dance with one another; handbags on the floor, waiting for the blokes to finally join.
It’s a mad world
Both the female leads are, for lack of a better term, slightly mad. Although Heather can be seen as being completely round the bend. *Suffice to say, despite her mental issues, Heather is still dead clever.*
Despite the, at times, dialogue heavy nature of The Wasp, the film twists and turns delightfully. Harris proves that Moonlight was not a “one off.” Dorman leaves no doubt that she is a force to be reckoned with and kudos to both the young actors who play the younger versions of Heather and Carla.
The verdict
The Wasp is cinematic platinum. The film is as English as tea, scones, double decker buses or crumpets. It garners a full 5 stars out of 5 and you will not see where this one is headed. It is darkly brilliant and The Wasp is streaming on MGM + right now.
The trailer
Related
Discover more from Mikes Film Talk
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
