Newcastle-born actor Charlie Carrick uses his native accent to devastating effect in this clever feature debut from director Mary Nighy (Belle’s daughter).
Carrick doesn’t get particularly awful lines as Simon, but it’s his voice, or oftentimes his WhatsApp messages, that really get on the nerves of his girlfriend Alice (Anna Kendrick).
In a powerful opening scene, she keeps nervously checking her phone while enjoying drinks with her two best friends (Wunmi Mosaku and Kaniehtiio Horn).
When they invite her to a country cottage to celebrate her birthday, Alice anxiously agrees before rushing home in a panic. The next day, she makes a strange excuse for her handsome boyfriend, claiming that she has been ordered to go on a business trip.
At first, this lie seems completely gratuitous. But this is the first red flag about their relationship. And after a while, we can imagine Simon’s needy voice expressing disapproval of everything she does.
When Alice finally walks away, her classmates are first confused and then upset by her behavior. She pulls her hair and gets upset about what she eats, what she looks like, and even what she dreams about.
After she reveals that she lied to Simone so she could join them, they express concerns about her toxic relationship. “It doesn’t hurt me though,” she protests.
He may not hit her physically but his perfectionism and narcissism take their toll. Alanna Francis’ clever script and Kendrick’s nervous performance show us how it feels like to be swayed over and over again by the annoying voice of an abusive partner.
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