“Eileen,” which debuted to mostly positive reviews at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, will hit theaters amid year-end awards season fever. Neon has scheduled the 1960s-set queer melodrama, starring Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway, for a platform release in New York City and Los Angeles on December 1 before opening on December 8.
Based on the novel of the same name by Ottessa Moshfegh and produced by FIFTH SEASON, “Eileen” follows a young secretary who is charmed and later befriends a glamorous new counselor at the prison where she works. In the midst of a harsh 1964 Massachusetts winter, her friendship takes an unexpected turn when Rebecca reveals a dark secret and sets Eileen on a sinister path.
“Eileen” is directed by William Oldroyd from a screenplay courtesy of Moshfegh and Luke Goebel. Both serve as producers along with the director and Anthony Bregman, Stefanie Azpiazu and Peter Cron.
Along with its most sought-after stars, it features Shea Whigham, Marin Ireland and Owen Teague (who will soon headline the upcoming “Planet of the Apes” film opposite Freya Allen).
Steve Pond in TheWrap called it “a blackly humorous riff on film noir and a tour de force for its cast”, and the film’s commercial hopes arguably lie at the core of two hands. The picture currently has 88% fresh and 7.4/10 on Rotten Tomatoes.
Hathaway’s 25-year career speaks for itself, while McKenzie has quickly become a must-see talent since her debut on Debra Granik’s “Leave No Trace” in 2017. Granik’s “Winter’s Bone” put Jennifer Lawrence in the spotlight. map (and gave the future star his first Oscar nomination) in 2010, so maybe Granik should get more money to make more movies. Since the 2017 drama, McKenzie has starred in M. Night Shyamalan’s “Old,” Edgar Wright’s “Last Night In SoHo” and Taika Waititi’s “Jojo Rabbit,” among other projects.