Wicked Little Letters

Wicked Little Letters
Starring Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Anjana Vasan, Malachi Kirby
Directed by Thea Sharrock

In Littlehampton, England in 1920, there was a scandal running among the town. A series of lewd letters were written to several women in the town, most notably the religiously pious Edith Swan. The loud, shrewd, outspoken Rose Gooding was charged with writing the letters, although she maintained her innocence. When the true culprit was caught, it sent the town into a tizzy and for such a seemingly benign event became historical memory. The Studio Canal film "Wicked Little Letters" sheds light on this moment in history, a film that also touches on lack of female representation in the 1920s delivered by amazing performances and a truly laugh-out-loud story.

Edith Swan (Olivia Colman) is a middle-aged spinster living in Littlehampton in 1920 with her father Edward (Timothy Spall) and mother Victoria (Gemma Jones) and she lives a very devout Christian life - she reads the Bible daily, attends Christian gatherings with her friends, and prays often. On the other end of the coin is Edith's neighbor Rose Gooding (Jessie Buckley) - a single mother who's got a sailor's mouth, drinks like a fish, and is every part Edith's opposite. Although the two women become friends, they have a falling out, and soon after Edith starts receiving lewd, vulgar letters that she suspects come from Rose herself. Rose is arrested and charged with the crime, but police officer Gladys Moss (Anjana Vasan) thinks she's innocent, and sets out to prove it - despite her boss's objections, as he's prepared to put the crimes to bed by charging the most obvious suspect. As the letters mount and more people receive them, it becomes harder for Gladys to prove Rose's innocence - and the clock is ticking.

"Wicked Little Letters" is one of those fun, breezy films that doesn't rely on spectacular effects or mind-bending storytelling to tell its tale, but instead is a small, simple story that is heightened by its committed performers who make you fully believe in the tale they tell. It's filled with raunchy humor without being crude, oddly almost something that the family could enjoy together - as long as you don't mind your children hearing some outlandish vulgar language that, when strung together in the letters, really doesn't make a lick of sense.

That's one of the highlights of the film. The letters themselves are silly and downright nutty, like someone was doing mad libs but interjecting naughty words in favor of normal ones. The sentences don't make sense, but more often than not they were met with me laughing so hard I was dry heaving. British humor is subjective, and it's my type of humor - intellectual but lewd without being crude. From the start you know Rose didn't write the letters - as she said herself, she would tell it to your face - so finding out who is doing it should've been a big mystery, but even Sherlock Holmes at age three could guess the real culprit in the first few seconds.

Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley co-starred in "The Lost Daughter" where they played the same character at different stages in life (and both earned Oscar nominations for their roles as well), and here they reunite once again but this time get to play off one another, and their chemistry is electric. Colman is always amazing in anything she does, and as Edith she once again channels her extraordinary talent for such a simple woman. Edith is on one hand a generic spinster who is held under the thumb of her father, but on the other has a different side about her that delves more into her troubled psyche, and Colman excels at both. Buckley lets loose as Rose, and isn't afraid to speak her mind or do some outlandish things (including one moment that you'll know when you see it, a scene that Buckley did on her own accord). Although she's lewd and rude, Rose is also sympathetic and relatable, a woman that anyone would love to have as their best friend. Rounding out this triangle of actresses is Anjana Vasan as Gladys, the police officer who will stop at nothing to prove Rose's innocence. She is strong and smart, underestimated by her male counterparts and has to work twice as hard to get the same recognition, and nails her performance.

It's not the mystery that drives the film, as we find out the true culprit early on, but instead the main thrust of the film centers on female empowerment in a time where it was unheard of. Edith is a devout God-fearing woman who hasn't left the nest because her overbearing father won't allow it, and it slowly suffocates her as she desperately tries to seek an outlet for her inner turmoil. Rose - not just a female, but also an Irish immigrant - is seen by the townspeople as a crude woman who uses sailor language and doesn't really give a flying fig about what anyone thinks, which makes her dangerous to the male patriarchy who wants to keep women in their place. Officer Gladys Moss is a glorified secretary for the police force who knows there's more to the letters than meets the eye, but is held down by the oppressive thumb of her boss who doesn't want her investigating the matter at all, leaving her to do so on her own time and undercover. These three women are the main thrust of the film, and through their eyes you really see the world for what it was, and appreciate what it is now.

Featuring a strong female-led cast and a hilarious and yet heartfelt story, "Wicked Little Letters" will have you laughing out loud from start to finish as well as leave you with great appreciation for how far we've come in the world of women's rights, thanks to subtle yet powerful performances by Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley and Anjana Vasan.

The Score: A-