You know some movies are going to be worth watching just by looking at the cast and the tagline. And the movie we will be talking about today is definitely one of them. Wicked Little Letters is a surprisingly profanity-laced British comedy based on actual events and featuring an all-star cast. In the year of our lord Satan Margaret Thatcher 1920, in the small town of Littlehampton, one woman becomes a target for a series of extremely offensive letters. Edith Swan, a devout Christian who’s still single and living with her parents seems like the last person who should be receiving such mail. And yet the mysterious sender seems hellbent on further humiliating poor Edith.
What’s going to happen in the coming weeks is a clusterfuck that’s, well, you better watch the movie to find out. In the lead roles, we have the dependable Olivia Colman (The Crown) and charming Jessie Buckley (Men). Jessie actually played a younger version of Olivia’s character in The Lost Daughter, Leda. Considerably thinner Timothy Spall was excellent but young Anjana Vasan stole the show here. She plays the woman police officer Gladys Moss. I remember her from the Demon 79 episode of the phenomenal television show Black Mirror. And I would also like to commend the supporting cast who did a terrific job.
Wicked Little Letters is not just a genuinely funny comedy but also a razor-sharp examination of our society in the early 20th century. While one of the main topics is gender equality, others are just as potent. This incredibly judgy attitude is something I found quite intriguing and almost infuriating. Mostly because some of these accusations and moral judgments are still alive and well, in the 21st century. And don’t for a second think that this was in some way blunt or pretentious. This examination was subtle, rational, and authentic. It’s entirely coincidental that while this little story was happening, the suffragette movement was blossoming in London.
Even when women first got the right to vote, they had to be over 30, unlike men who could vote as soon as they turned 21. Moreover, it’s a big question if even these changes would be implemented if such a huge number of men died in WWI, As soon as they went to war, women took over their jobs, something that was unthinkable just a couple of years earlier. However, I don’t want you to think that the movie is going to beat you over the head with this.
At the center stage are these wickedly offensive and hilariously cheeky letters. Each time they started reading them I would burst out laughing. I simply could not help it. Here’s just a part of one of them:
Dear Edith. You foxy-ass old whore. You really are a tricksy old fucker. Her Majesty, Miss Swan, sucks ten cocks a week minimum. Edith Swan takes it up the Swanee, and she loves it more than Christmas day. You foxy-arse old fucking mare, you want spiking in the nose, you big smelly bitch! You great big fucking onion.
One of the offensive letters sent to Edith swan
And there will be a lot of these letters with even cheekier and more hilarious and creative insults. The fact that all of this actually happened makes the movie even funnier. Just imagine these people reading these letters a hundred years ago. This brings me to the next topic and that’s the Internet. I mean, it was so refreshing to see what people were doing in a time when even the electricity was a new thing. Wicked Little Letters also works as an original character study. This is where I have to stop myself again from revealing anything although I really want to talk about these things.
Finally, if you’re looking for more British comedies I suggest you start with The Duke, The Lost King, and The Bromley Boys. All three of these movies are also based on actual events. If you want something a bit more wholesome, Waking Ned Devine is a good choice. And if it’s foul-mouthedness you seek, ye shall find in The Bronze.
Director: Thea Sharrock
Writer: Jonny Sweet
Cast: Jessie Buckley, Olivia Colman, Timothy Spall, Gemma Jones, Anjana Vasan, Malachi Kirby, Alisha Weir
Fun Facts: Oddly enough, Wicked Little Letters was not filmed in Littlehampton but in the nearby towns of Arundel (actual town and streets) and Worthing (seaside scenes).
Rating:
IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt20234774/
