VILLAINS (2019)

Starring Bill Skarsgård, Maika Monroe, Jeffrey Donovan & Kyra Sedgwick

Directed by Dan Berk & Robert Olsen

Written by Dan Berk & Robert Olsen

Distributed by Alter/Gunpowder & Sky. 89 minutes. Opening 9/20 at Regal LA Live.

The allure of the “bad boy” has long been a cinematic staple, regardless of gender. From Jim Stark in Rebel Without a Cause to Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, audiences are equally fascinated and terrified by the suavity and unpredictable behavior of these characters. And when the bad guys are Bill Skarsgård and Maika Monroe, we’re practically begging for these small-time crooks to break into our house just so we can be in their presence. In Villains, writer/directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen pit this charming duo against an equally charming, yet much more disturbed, couple in a dark comedy that’s pure savage.

Jules (Monroe) and Mickey (Skarsgård) are the millennial versions of Bonnie and Clyde, robbing gas stations to acquire just enough money to escape to Florida and live out their wildest fantasies: a life without rules and responsibilities. After yet another successful robbery, Mickey and Jules encounter a hiccup when their getaway car runs out of gas, stranding them on the side of a highway. They spot an isolated, and more importantly, a vacant, house nearby and decide to break in and steal their car. What starts off as a simple con job turns into much more when the duo realize the homeowners’ fruit is fake, appliances are out of date and find a little girl (Blake Baumgartner) chained up in the basement. Clearly, some discoveries are more shocking than others.

The tension comes to a crescendo when the homeowners, George (Jeffrey Donovan) and Gloria (Kyra Sedgwick), return home. What transpires is a darkly hilarious game of cat and mouse between the equally kooky couples. Sexual electricity mixed with mental instability provides plenty of twists to the high stakes our protagonists find themselves in. The laughs outnumber the scares, and Villains is all the better for it.

Villains feels like a much bigger film than its humble scope of production. It takes place primarily in one location and lists only eight actors in its cast, but the performances are mighty fierce. Maika Monroe (It Follows) and Bill Skarsgård (It) share palpable chemistry and bring the story to life with their exaggerated delivery, a perfect counterbalance to Jeffrey Donovan and Kyra Sedgwick’s more even-keeled tone. Music from Courtney Barnett (Pedestrian at Best) and Redding Hunter (Safe Travels) further adds to the film’s energy. It’s set to screen only at Regal Theaters, for now (assuming a VOD in the near future), so keep this one on your radar if you’re looking for a fun way to spend 90 minutes.