Widows is a heist thriller movie that was released in 2018. The film was produced by Regency Enterprises, Film4, New Regency, See-Saw Films, and TSG Entertainment. Steve McQueen directed the movie, while Viola Davis, Michelle Rodriguez, Elizabeth Debicky, Cynthia Erivo, and Colin Farrell played the lead roles. The movie’s primary focus is on the story of a wife trying to pay off her husband’s debt while seeking revenge.
Synopsis
In Chicago, Harry Rawlings and his gang attempted to rob the money owned by Jamal Manning, the mafia boss. Harry was successful in robbing two million dollars and planned to escape using a car. However, the police caught up with them, and the car exploded. People assumed that everyone who was in the car died.
Jamal demanded that Veronica, Harry’s wife, pay off the money stolen by her husband. Jamal needed the money to support his campaign to become a member of the South Side council in Chicago. He was competing against Jack Mulligan, who had been holding the position for decades.
Bash, Harry’s driver, gave Veronica the key to Harry’s safety deposit box. Inside the safety deposit box, there was a notebook that contained a plan to rob Mulligan’s house, with a total haul of five million USD. Bash suggested that Veronica sells the notebook to Jamal’s associates. However, Veronica refused to do so and chose to keep her husband’s notebook.
Veronica decided to carry out her husband’s planned robbery. She recruited two other widows with similar stories to Harry’s, Alice and Linda. There was also Amanda, who was not invited to join the group because she had a four-month-old baby.
Alice’s task was to prepare weapons and a van to escape, while Linda tried to unravel Harry’s blueprint for robbing Jamal. Jatemme, Jamal’s brother and the right-hand man, killed the witnesses, including Bash, to find Harry’s notebook.
Alice used the skills of her boyfriend, who was a real estate owner, to decipher Harry’s blueprint. The blueprint showed that Mulligan’s house was the ideal target. Linda recruited Belle, a babysitter, to be the van’s driver for their escape.
Veronica visited Amanda and discovered that there was a flash disk that belonged to Harry in Amanda’s house. Veronica began to question Amanda’s relationship with Harry and whether it had any connection to Amanda’s baby.
Veronica’s suspicion grew stronger as her dog kept barking at a door, indicating that the dog recognized someone behind the door. Veronica left Amanda’s house without looking further into Harry’s matter. However, Harry betrayed his group by blowing up the car to work with Mulligan to sabotage Jamal’s campaign.
When Veronica returned home, she tried to recall the last time Harry called her. Harry was shot by the police at the time. Veronica disguised herself as a victim seeking refuge and protection from Mulligan’s office against Manning’s gang. Meanwhile, Belle successfully scanned the office’s security system to enter Mulligan’s office. Will Veronica’s plan to pull off the robbery succeed? How will her connection with Harry, who is still alive, change the situation?
Solid Character Depth
Widows did not rush to present the tension. On the contrary, it walked slowly to give depth to the characters. Each character was given a chance to show who they are and their motives, creating a complicated plot but neatly arranged.
Veronica is a widow who works as a teacher with a child. Viola Davis is the perfect choice to play Veronica. Her role as a mother, a teacher, then a planner for the heist is an interesting paradox. Viola successfully brought Veronica to life as a memorable character, especially after the scene involving Amanda.
Alice lost her home and was a victim of domestic abuse by her husband, who was Harry’s partner. She had to rely on being a mistress to a wealthy man for survival. Linda used to own a store, but it disappeared because her husband was a gambler and Harry’s partner. There was also Belle, who was not related to Harry at all. She was a babysitter.
The antagonists also had a character depth. Jamal Manning was a politician and the head of the Chicago mafia. Meanwhile, Jack Mulligan was someone who was not entirely a good leader.
Conclusion
Widows is a well-constructed story that has a mixture of revenge and heist, making it a film that is both exciting and engaging. The character depth makes it easy to relate to their struggles and motivations. Overall, Widows is a must-see movie for those who love thrillers and stories that have complex but satisfying endings.
