I got the chance to review the movie Becky last week. The film is directed by Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion, and was written by Nick Morris, Ruckus Skye, and Lane Skye. The thriller stars Lulu Wilson in the title role of 13 year old Becky, an angsty teen dealing with the loss of her mother, who died a year before. She is having trouble dealing with the big emotions of her age and circumstances, while taking a weekend to bond with her dad, played by Joel McHale.
The weekend begins with the news that Becky’s dad has decided not to sell their family cabin, which is great news for Becky, but it’s immediately soured by the fact that Becky’s dad’s girlfriend (Amanda Brugel) and her young son have showed up to spend the weekend as well. Becky obviously has some reservations about the relationship, which comes to a head when they announce their engagement, and Becky takes off for her fort in the woods to be alone.
This is when menacing antagonist Dominick, played by Kevin James, enters the picture. I had major reservations about James playing a bad guy. I watch King of Queens regularly, and have only seen James in film roles in which he plays a fumbling goofball or all-around good guy, so this was a stretch. He played the creep role pretty well, and I found myself convinced, despite my doubts.
The film plays out with James and his cohort, one of whom is played by former Canadian professional wrestler, Robert Maillet, trying to track down an old wooden key that they are in search of for some nefarious reason relating to their ties to the KKK. The men torture the family, and Becky retaliates in R-rated Home Alone fashion.
The strong points of the film are the violence, which is crazy, often unexpected, and fun, and inflicted by a very angry teenage girl. The vengeance she rightfully enacts and the performances are exciting to watch and feel very satisfying.
There were just some plotholes that left me unsatisfied. We never learn what exactly the key is for. I don’t mind an occasional loose end in a film that allows audiences to wonder or decide for themselves, but this felt unintentional and sloppy. We are also left with a Psycho-esque ending, in which we don’t know if Becky is going to mentally recover. We don’t know what happens to her, or if she’s aware of her mental state, but it feels like just another loose ending.
One other issue, which, if you know me, you are probably already familiar with my feelings, is what I call the “dog cop-out.” If you see a dog in a film, especially a horror/thriller, you can be like 95% certain that dog is going to die. It’s an easy ploy to pull at the viewers heartstrings, and lets the audience know that the bad guys are really bad because they’d stoop to kill a dog. It’s a cop out. It’s stupid, and unless it’s a major plot point (John Wick), it’s useless. There are two dogs in this film. One of them gets killed right away, and the other gets hurt multiple times, but is an essential character throughout, showing the wrong way and right way to use a dog in a movie, in my opinion. We also never get to see what happens to dog #2.
I had other issues with the storyline as well, but also found myself enjoying the action, and rooting for the good guys. The movie was fun and well-shot, but had a weak story. All in all, you might have some fun checking it out, but don’t expect much more beyond the action.
Becky hits theaters, Drive-ins, Digital and On-Demand tomorrow, June 5th, 2020.
