Last Night in Soho

Edgar Wright has, over the years, delivered quite a few cult films and along the way developed a following to match it. After jumping into the documentary film waters with The Sparks Brothers, to much success, his fans have been eagerly anticipating his next work of fiction and the good news is that wait is over. Last Night in Soho is Wright’s first straight-up horror film and while it might be a departure from what he has made so far, it is a passion project that has been ten years in the making and a welcomed addition to his filmography. Wright who is a self-professed film nerd shows off his talent and delivers a rollercoaster ride that is gripping and filled with plenty of twists.

Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie) is a small town girl with big dreams of becoming a fashion designer. Those dreams take her from the comforts of her granny’s house to the city of London, with its many stories that makes up its history. When she gets to her new place she is greeted by her roommate Jocasta (Synnove Karlsen), who quickly shows her alpha female colors to the shy and often quiet Eloise. Not fitting in too well, Eloise looks for her own place and finds it with Mrs. Collins (Diana Rigg), who only has a few rules, but offers a secluded spot for her. Things are not as peaceful as they seem and soon Eloise starts to have dreams of a beautiful blonde woman named Sandy (Anya Taylor-Joy), but not just a dream about her, but dreaming that Eloise is her, in another time, but the same place. At first the the dreams serve as inspiration, but soon they take a darker turn and Eloise is consumed with questions needing answers.

Last Night in Soho is Wright’s most visually striking and thematic film to date, which he also co-wrote with Krysty Wilson-Cairns (1917). Wright leans heavily on the horror path as he skillfully brings the Giallo of the 70’s into this century and reminds you why you should love those type of films. He brings so much skill to this film and his shots and tricks, which were done mostly in camera really shine, including a house of horrors sequence which might be the best scene in the movie.

Of course the two leads, Taylor-Joy and McKenzie are fabulous with McKenzie showing that she is in a different acting class with her wonderful tribute to Audrey Hepburn. While those two represent the next generation of great actors, Terence Stamp and Rigg remind you that the older generation still can bring it, especially Rigg with Last Night in Soho being her final film before she passed this year. I enjoyed absolutely  everything about this film, from the score by Steven Price to the cinematography by Chung-hoon Chung but most of all I loved watching Wright grow as a filmmaker. Going into any film of his comes with a certain level of hype for me, and Wright easily meets that. He delivers an abundance of riches with this one and you can’t help but enjoy them, be it last or any night.