Review | ‘Last Night in Soho’ is an alluring time capsule of the ‘60s

Edgar Wright’s “Last Night in Soho” delivers an original psychological thriller. Photo courtesy of Riley Stewart

On the morning of Oct. 31, I stood in the shower washing off fake tattoos from my sailor costume and a sense of existential dread. Unfortunately, the fate of the Gregorian calendar decided Halloween would fall on a Sunday night, and plans were either pushed up or too scarce due to midterms the following day. As I scrubbed off the final palm tree tattoo, I realized, for the first time, I had nothing to look forward to on Halloween night. 

That’s when I knew I had to turn to the movie theater, where a $13 admission fee buys me between two and three hours of temporary solace. Instead of moping around and stuffing my face with Kit-Kats, I watched Edgar Wright’s “Last Night in Soho” — a colorful, mysteriously groovy, psychological thriller that slowly pushes on the gas pedal until it’s pressed against the floor. 

The film is set in present day England and revolves around Eloise Turner (Thomasin McKenzie), an aspiring fashion designer heavily influenced by the 1960s in all respects: from her music taste to her expectations of the world. The audience follows Eloise as she moves from her rural home in Cornwall to a fashion school in urban London. Following grief from her nightmare roommate, Jocasta (Synnove Karlsen), Eloise rents out a room in a tattered flat run by the owner, Ms. Collins (Diana Rigg), where she starts to have dreams sending her back to the ‘60s.

Immediately, I was intrigued by the concept of moving to an urban center as the basis for a horror film. Often, the serial killers and ghosts reside in abandoned homes or isolated lake houses but never fashion schools, libraries or parties. This plays into one of the biggest strengths of the film, which is that the chaos is relentless, and in turn, deprivesEloise of a safe space.

But before the mountain of supernatural tension, the film takes its sweet time to build up. The first act contains virtually no elements of horror but instead presents an equally engaging story. Wright takes the time to establish a strong emotional connection to Eloise through her disappointing social endeavors as the small-town girl in a big city.

Under her white sheets, Eloise is transformed into Sandy (Anya Taylor-Joy), a tenacious up-and-coming performer exposed to the vibrancy and allure of the ‘60s. However, after several nights of counting sheep, Eloise and Sandy are exposed to the corruption of the entertainment industry, especially the exploitative manner in which women are treated to stay afloat.

The dream sequences in the ‘60s are jaw-dropping. The music is groovy, the special effects are baffling, and the intensity picks up immensely, accompanied by the commanding acting of Taylor-Joy. The sequences even induce an astonishing scene where talent agent Jack (Matt Smith) dances with both Eloise and Sandy. Each time he twirls Sandy, she suddenly transforms into Eloise by the time the twirl is completed and vice-versa.

At times, I was upset when the film switched from the ‘60s dream back to reality, because the world was so engaging. However, the horror elements soon kicked in, and I was hooked again.

Soon, the lines between Eloise’s world and Sandy’s world are blurred, and Eloise starts to mimic her persona after Sandy: dressing like her, dying her hair the same color blonde and repeating the same dialogue. The more Eloise copies Sandy, the stronger their inexplicable connection strengthens, and Eloise begins to endre visions of the ghosts that ruined Sandy’s life. Eloise’s reality turns into a nightmare as these visions affect her everyday life — from fashion school to maintaining friendships.

A common element of horror is darkness being used to obscure ghosts, ghouls and monsters; thus, we associate the dark as scary and filled with jump-scares in the shadows. “Last Night in Soho” is an exception to this. Everything we fear about the dark creeps into the nuances of everyday life, and daylight is no longer an escape for Eloise. Her life is turned upside down as her visions last beyond her dreams. 

When the paranoia begins, there isn't a moment downtown until the credits. Eloise endures tremendous agony as these visions consume her in her journey to solve a murder from her vision. Through every step of the way, I was surprised at the seemingly normal moments that were contaminated with jarring moments and sudden gore. Wright managed to effectively transform the captivating 1960s into a dangerous hellscape. 

However, along this winding road, there were a few pot holes along the way. Some of the acting from the supporting cast felt like it belonged in a B-movie: in particular, Karlsen as Eloise’s roommate, Jocasta, and Rita Tushingham as Eloise’s grandma, Peggy Turner. The two actors delivered their lines in a melodramatic fashion when it felt it should have been a subtle delivery. Additionally, I found myself questioning the logic behind some of the characters' decisions throughout the film, which felt like a shortcoming in respect to the work of co-writers Wright and Krysty Wilson-Cairns.

Although the ending contained an original plot twist, viewers might find it to be a bit out of nowhere. Wright tries to be clever and put the twist right under your nose, which I applaud, but the execution felt rushed. The film closed out with a poor display of  deus ex machina, sweeping everything from under our feet before we could get a proper resolution.

Though the ending leaves something to be desired from the viewer, fans of Wright’s filmography should still see “Last Night in Soho” in theaters. Viewers should keep a close eye on stylistic elements of the film — especially the costumes, the music and the vivacious colors — as can expect to enjoy strong performances from McKenzie, Taylor-Joy, Smith, and Terrance Stamp.

It’s unfortunate the film was a box-office flop, since Wright is fully committed to telling compelling and original stories. It may be a product of many other blockbuster films hitting the market at the same time — like “No Time to Die,” “Dune” and “Eternals,” to name a few. But as a cinephile fed up with endless remakes and sequels, I admire Wright’s tenacity to tell this passion project. 

“Last Night in Soho” is a wild journey back in time that starts off as an intriguing slow-burn but slowly transcends into a rollercoaster of chaos. It was a great way to cap off my Halloween weekend and shake off the initial sadness of an eventless Oct. 31.