Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
The remake epidemic currently sweeping Hollywood is a fairly predictable one, but not one we ever suspected might reach a Coppola. When Sofia Coppola‘s reimagining of the 1971 drama The Beguiled hit theaters last summer, however, it became clear that some source material is totally ripe for reimagining – and that’s exactly what she does with her own take on this Southern Gothic thriller. Featuring an all-star cast including the likes of Nicole Kidman, Kirsten Dunst, Colin Farrell, and Elle Fanning, Coppola’s The Beguiled is proof that a fresh remake can stand on its own when done right.
It’s 1864 in Civil War-plagued Virginia, and Miss Martha Farnsworth’s Seminary for Young Ladies is doing its best to educate its students and keep an efficient home running. Things are tough enough on their own, but when a wounded Union deserter, Corporal John McBurney (Farrell), winds up in their backyard, the women take him in to help him heal – and things only go downhill from there. McBurney awakens something in this group of women, bewitching them one by one until tensions run high and they start to compete for his affections. This can’t go on forever, though, and Coppola smartly subverts expectations and sees these women bind together rather than fall apart.
Anchored by beguiling (sorry) performances from its leads, The Beguiled builds tension in a mesmerizing manner, allowing things to boil precariously until can’t be contained any longer. Rather than leaning into the tired tropes of competitive women willing to turn on their friends for the right man, Coppola instead plays against clichés – and the result is nothing short of brilliant. A straight remake of Clint Eastwood’s 1970’s flick would have been pointless, but Coppola’s vision for turning the tables remains strong for the entirety of her film’s duration. Watching power exchange hands and vulnerability travel from character to character is absolutely fascinating, and makes for an explosive, surprising thriller, one that speaks to Coppola’s growing discipline as a filmmaker.
What works best about Coppola’s take on this familiar tale is its tendency to embrace comedy and use it to tip the scales when the film could become too heavy to enjoy. There may be dark forces at work here, sure, but what would this kind of female-driven melodrama be without a little black humor? If the tight script and top-notch performances weren’t enough, The Beguiled is also a visual treat, engaging viewers with every beautiful frame. Remakes may be overplayed at this point, but this reinvention of The Beguiled is exempt from that fatigue. It’s lean, mean, and totally entertaining, delivering us a period drama through the female gaze that we could do with seeing a little more often these days.
