Their husbands are all dead....

yet somehow that’s just the beginning of their troubles.  Such is the pitiable lot of the women in ‘Widows,’ the latest gritty and riveting heist thriller from Steve McQueen (not to be confused with the fast-and-furious ‘Bullitt’ actor), the Brit director/screenwriter who took Hollywood by storm with his 2013 Oscar-winning slavery drama ’12 Years a Slave.’  Based on a British TV show (which ran for all of 12 episodes) from the 1980’s and contemporized with a tightly plotted screenplay by McQueen and ‘Gone Girl’ writer Gillian Flynn, ‘Widows’ promises twists as well as thrills in this humdinger of  a movie.

 

Anchored by the strong and mesmerizing performance of the talented Viola Davis as a widow who exemplifies what it means to survive, as well as a solid supporting cast including Michelle Rodriguez (in her most dramatic role since ‘Girlfight’), Elizabeth Debicki and Cynthia Erivo (remember her from “Bad Times” at a certain strange hotel?), ‘Widows’ effortlessly weaves us through its sordid world of local politics, corruption and double crosses in modern-day Chicago.  Not so much a morality tale as an uncompromising urban portrait of desperation and despair, there are no black-and-white heroes and villains in this film, only various characters painted in shades-of-gray.

 

While I can’t say I loved this film largely because none of its characters (including its anti-heroines) are particularly likeable and its subject is rather dark, I have to acknowledge that it is a masterfully crafted thriller/drama from a purely academic standpoint.  It’s not the fun popcorn crowd-pleaser that the earlier all-female ensemble heist thriller released this year was (in case you’re wondering, I’m referring to ‘Ocean’s 8’), which may partly account for its lack of box office muscle, but why not give it a look anyway because what else are you gonna do on a cold day in December?

Grade: A-