Featured Image Credit: StudioCanal
Topics: Netflix, Tyla Recommends, TV And Film
Kya Buller
Netflix viewers have been left gobsmacked following the release of a scandalous film starring The Crown's Olivia Colman.
The black-comedy meets mystery film, originally released by StudioCanal and Film4, is based on a true scandal, which has captivated viewers.
The film chronicles a town's haphazard investigation into the workings of an anonymous author who has sent many incredibly profane letters sent to the residents of Littlehampton - sometimes rude, sometimes offensive.
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The film is called Wicked Little Letters.
Alongside Colman, it stars Jessie Buckley, Lolly Adefope and Timothy Spall.
The plot begins in 1920, in the thick of Britain's suffragette movement.
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Edith Swan (Colman) an unmarried, religious woman, starts to receive letters which include a lot of foul language, including the sentence: "The cakes you make look like they’ve fallen out of some f***ing sheep’s f***ing arsehole."
Her father, Edward (Spall), becomes increasingly distressed as the number of letters received reaches 19.
He then asks local officials for help, which spurs on a witch-hunt.
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Initially, their neighbour, Rose Gooding (Buckley), is suspected, due to her being a single parent, having a penchant for swearing and for being an Irish immigrant.
The film has been well reviewed, holding a very impressive audience score of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes, as well as an 80% critics score.
Journalist Clarisse Loughrey noted for the Independent: "These are larger-than-life performances but knowingly so, delivered with a slapstick sensibility that sees Buckley streak naked across the village, aim darts at a man’s head, and take a shovel to the face."
She went on to add: "Wicked Little Letters nods to the post-war shifts in women’s societal roles – not only in its use of foul language, of course, but in the way a single mother like Rose lives openly and unmarried with another man."
But it's not just critics who have loved the title - viewers have also taken to social media to pile on the praise.
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One person posted on X: "Watching Wicked Little Letters on Netflix and it is EXCELLENT! I've snort-laughed a lot.
"But it's also just different to anything else I've seen recently. Plus, Olivia Coleman is amazing at everything she turns her hand to."
Another said: "Wicked Little Letters is one of the most entertaining English period films made in years. A vulgar & hilarious whodunnit scandal stirred by female repression & false superiority. Olivia Colman & Jesse Buckley are a delightful foul-mouthed pairing backed by a highly enjoyable cast."
Susie Dent added: "If you’re interested in the power of full-frontal language, this film is for you."