Written by Sarah Nash

Graphic by Sarah Nash

Brock Turner was sentenced to a controversial six months in jail by Judge Aaron Persky in March of 2016. A year before, Brock Turner had raped and assaulted an unconscious Chanel Miller. The case and trial flooded the media, and Turner, a Stanford student, gained a notorious image after much of the public viewed his shockingly short sentence as an injustice. Rather than a mugshot, pictures of his smiling face covered the internet and news, many articles even referring to him as a “Promising Young Man.”  This brought up questions about how careers should be defined or destroyed. Some thought of this horrific crime as an adolescent mistake –– that he should be given a second chance. Others believed Turner deserved to pay for his crimes. What punishment is just? 

Emerald Fennell’s “Promising Young Woman” follows Academy Award nominated Carey Mulligan as Cassie Thomas as she answers this question by taking matters into her own hands. With a once “promising” future as a former medical school student, Cassie now lives at home and spends every night out in clubs and bars. But her nightlife has a different goal than most. A sober Cassie tricks “nice guys” into thinking she is drunk and lets them take her home. These characters act polite at first but then reveal their intentions once they get her in bed. Little do the men know, Cassie carries a small, red notebook filled with names and tally marks for each man she tricks. Once she reveals her sobriety, she makes them think twice about ever pulling something like that again.

Throughout the film, we learn that her weekly revenge has a heartbreaking origin –– which you’ll have to see to learn. She runs into many characters with philosophies you have surely heard before such as, “We get accusations like this all the time. What would you have me do, ruin a young man’s life?” and “It’s every guy’s worst nightmare, getting accused like that.” The theme of “nice guys'' comes up frequently in the film, and is perfectly complemented with their casting choices. Seeing familiar faces, such as Max Greenfield –– Schimdt from “New Girl,” makes these characters all the more trustworthy and in turn, all the more creepy. Other actors such as Adam Brody of “The OC and Gilmore Girls,” comedian Bo Burnham, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse of “Superbad” add to this effect.

So what makes a nice person? How do women and men’s fears differ? Why and when are certain people forgiven for their actions? Full of stunning color palettes and shiny cinematography, “Promising Young Woman” is full of unexpected twists and turns, and concepts that will leave you pondering long after the credits have rolled.