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I really dug provocative Dutch filmmaker Halina Reijn’s first A24 offering “Bodies Bodies Bodies” (my review here) from a few years back, which had me excited to see her latest and much-ballyhooed outing with the esteemed arthouse shingle “Babygirl” (now in theaters).
Nicole Kidman stars as Romy, the successful CEO of an automated labor company who’s married to theater director Jacob (Antonio Banderas) with whom she has two teenage daughters Isabel (Esther McGregor, Ewan’s kid … kinda fun to have her playing his “Moulin Rouge” co-star’s child) and Nora (Vaughan Reilly).
Life’s pretty good for Romy. She and her family have a handsomely-appointed apartment in the city and a palatial country estate upstate. She has a bright assistant in Esme (Sophie Wilde, a breakout after last year’s terrifying A24 horror flick “Talk to Me”) who sees to almost every aspect of her life. But Romy’s still unsatisfied … sexually most of all.
Enter Samuel (Harris Dickinson, another A24 vet with “The Iron Claw”), a young man who stops an escaped dog from attacking Romy on the street. Turns out Samuel’s one of a new pool of interns working for Romy’s company. He brazenly selects her as his mentor and almost instantly begins making flippant remarks to her. She’s a smitten kitten who not only tolerates such behavior, but is turned on by it. The two enter into a torrid affair wherein he exerts power over her, which could almost certainly derail her personal and professional lives.
“Babygirl” is a movie I respect more than I like. It’s an audacious film that most assuredly won’t be for all tastes. There are acts of degradation and humiliation that will turn off many audience members while undoubtedly turning others on. It’s a picture that couldn’t and shouldn’t be made by a man at this particular point in time. It has interesting things to say about corporate, gender and racial politics. It’s sleazy, sexy and most especially sad.
It’s undeniably handsomely made and well-acted. Kidman, Dickinson, Banderas and Wilde are all sensational with Kidman being the standout. This is a hugely brave performance from the Academy Award-winning actress and will undoubtedly land her another nod. Romy is a complicated character and Kidman bares her body and soul in bringing her to the screen. I wasn’t surprised by Kidman’s work – she’s been taking big swings for almost 30 years starting with Gus Van Sant’s “To Die For” back in 1995 – but I was impressed by it.
I don’t know that I’ll want to revisit “Babygirl” anytime soon even though I admire it, but it’d make one helluva double feature with Kidman’s other Christmas corrosion of conformity “Eyes Wide Shut.” Mostly I just wanna listen to INXS’ “Never Tear Us Apart” and George Michael’s “Father Figure” on repeat after seeing it. A glass of milk might be good too.
I don’t think it was sad! What was sad about it? She found her voice at the end and was finally sexually fulfilled.
I saw it last night. I agree 100% that it could only have been made by a woman. The most real portrayal of female masturbation and work/life conflict that I've ever seen. I found the film disturbing, erotic, multi-layered, and bone-achingly sad. As well as an intense celebration of the journey toward fulfillment that many go through. (I did find a couple of instances that off-putting because the characters behaved out of character, but perhaps the screenwriter was highlighting emotional intensity.)