Harry Rawlings and his partners-in-crime Carlos, Florek, and Jimmy were killed when their getaway van exploded in a police shootout. Crime boss (and fledgling politician) Jamal Manning coerced Harry's widow Veronica to give him back the money her husband stole from him or else suffer consequences. Veronica invited Linda and Alice (widows of Carlos and Florek respectively) to execute Harry's next robbery plan in order to pay back their husbands' debts and lift the threat to their lives.
Viola Davis' acting was as intense as ever even if this role as Veronica was a rather more popcorn outing compared to her more serious roles. With her intimidating physical features, Davis is really made to play these strong female characters, but she might have overdone it a bit in this one. Michelle Rodriguez got a break from her usual action heroine roles for more down-and-out dramatic moments as Linda.
Elizabeth Debicki is a tall striking beauty who fit in just right as an abused wife and daughter Alice. Cynthia Erivo, with that signature close-cropped blond hairstyle of hers, first gained attention in the 2015 revival of "The Color Purple" which won her a Tony for Best Actress in a Musical. As the designated driver Belle, she also got to show off her physicality.
Liam Neeson was in a role on the other side of the law as Harry, but his acting style was as would be expected. Colin Farrell and Robert Duvall played the Mulligans, a family of corrupt politicians. While Farrell does well in his role of Jack, the son who wanted to dissociate himself from his father's style of politics, but in the final analysis his role was not really necessary. Lukas Haas (whose name I still remember as the 8-year old Amish boy in 1985's "Witness") played David, a real estate agent who got involved in the widow's plot.
Bryan Tyree Henry and Daniel Kaluuya played ruthless brother mobsters, the Mannings. Henry's Jamal is the more quietly imposing one, while Kaluuya's Jatemme is the more psychotically violent one. Kaluuya's big round eyes, who made such a major impact in his breakthrough (and Oscar-nominated) role in "Get Out," were again in full play as they burned through the screen with unsettling madness.
This could have been made to fit right in for the #MeToo trend in movies this year. However, while the proper motivations may have been there, but it was really too far-fetched that these women who never did any crime before would even consider doing such a dangerous undertaking, especially knowing that they were up against major criminal organizations. Granted that these ladies were desperate, but it is no joke to undertake a major crime, complete with buying guns and a getaway car with a driver.
That said, the script certainly gave them a lot of lucky breaks to give the caper a semblance of credibility. There was an unusual decision by director Steve McQueen (and co-writer Gillian Flynn) to inexplicably spoil a critical twist earlier than it should have. Because of this, the climax did not have the shattering impact it could have had. 5/10.
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