Lou – Another Special Set of Skills (Early Review)

Ever since Liam Neeson’s recent run of similar action films, films centered around characters with a particular set of skills were brought back to prominence but in reality, that subgenre has existed long before that and will probably continue to exist long after. More or less the same in concept, it’s all about what the film does with it. Usually casting older actors, their age and presumed experience add gravitas and make these types of characters more believable. Lou is another of those films which essentially follows that aforementioned formula with Allison Janney unexpectedly taking center stage here as the titular Lou. Though she may take some getting used to in a role like this, she more than proves that she can fit in a film like this and delivers a kickass performance. While delivering a solid watch, the film was not without its issues. Where the film ultimately suffers is a shallow script and a story that never fully comes together in spite of Janney’s performance. The title is deceiving as she is merely one of many good pieces in a larger story that wasn’t sure of what kind of story it wanted to be. Those good pieces almost make up for the not so good ones.

Lou, as mentioned, follows a mysterious yet incredibly cold older woman named Lou (Janney) who mostly lived off the land on the outskirts of a close-knit small town on a remote Oregon island with her dog. Her quiet life would soon get turned upside down as the once remote island didn’t feel so remote anymore after the kidnapping of the daughter of her distraught next door neighbor Hannah (Smolett). The film quickly proved that Lou was someone who can clearly take care of herself but somehow this situation was different as she found herself reluctantly thrust into action where each of their pasts were slowly unraveled in the midst of a treacherous storm that left them virtually helpless. As much as it was finding Hannah’s daughter Vee (Ridley Asha Bateman), it was also surviving the elements. The latter made for some strong moments as both women became very acquainted with one another as they helped each other survive. While each woman may seem different, little did they know, they were more alike than they thought.

Once Lou tried to tie in Lou and Hannah into a larger story about their pasts, the story took a convoluted turn to justify itself but it only overshadowed the film’s original premise by making it something too much too fast that simply didn’t work without deep enough writing to support it. The goal of it all was undoubtedly to set up a universe that could live on beyond this film as has been done countless times before hoping to set up future franchises. Whether or not that universe will live on remains to be seen, however once again, any potential payoff emotional or otherwise is lessened or nonexistent. Nevertheless, seeing Lou in admittedly limited action was still a highlight even though it was rooted in next to nothing. Even less so for Hannah who felt like an afterthought thanks to some subpar writing and dialog. Facing an identity crisis, the film teetered between a story about Lou and Hannah and would have been better served having picked a side rather than force both. It still could have made a decent universe by choosing a side.

The best part of Lou is the stellar performance from Janney as the titular woman. In a much different role than most viewers are used to from her, she excels as a grizzled action star in a film that looks catered to the older actress as most special-set-of-skills action films are. Janney commands the screen as the gruff survivalist who could think on her feet so much so that she drowns out just about everyone else. She basically drags Smollett along both figuratively and literally which was not necessarily the latter’s fault. It was disappointing to see her relegated to what amounted to an occasionally whiny sidekick and a plot device to prop up Lou as the writing did not do her any favors.

At the end of the day, Lou is a serviceable action vehicle that may not bring anything new to the table but provides enough disposable entertainment until moving on to the next watch.

still courtesy of Netflix

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.