Movie Review: The Woman in the Window (2021)

A Netflix original film released in 2021, The Woman in the Window is based on the 2018 novel of the same name by A. J. Finn, and was directed by Joe Wright. After agoraphobic shut-in Anna Fox (Amy Adams) spends a night drinking with her new neighbour, Jane Russell (Julianne Moore), Anna is shocked to witness Jane’s murder from across the street. Calling the police, Anna alleges that Jane’s husband, Alistair (Gary Oldman) is to blame, after learning from Jane and Alistair’s son, Ethan (Fred Hechinger) that Alistair is abusive. As the police investigation continues, dark secrets emerge and Anna is unable to trust her own memories.

+ the supporting cast is really good. Julianne Moore is a one scene wonder, by virtue of her entire character; Gary Oldman is really good, and steals the scene whenever he shows up; Wyatt Russell feels underutilised, especially towards the latter half of the film; and the voice of Anthony Mackie is more compelling than most of the embodied actors

Amy Adams as Anna Fox next to a window, neither of which are the ones referenced in the film’s title.

– Amy Adams was so bland I just could not care for her at all. I understand that her character was supposed to be relatively broken, but basically she was the weakest of all the major characters in the film
– the apartment from which the titular window is overseen is so spacious and impressive, and Anna had consistent deliveries coming, and clearly wasn’t lacking for money. Frankly, I was hard-pressed to think of it as anything other than a great place to chill out
– I personally found the ending to be incredibly unsatisfying. Without saying whether it matches the source material, or has undertaken some Hollywood rewrites, it felt unearned and lacklustre

> Director Joe Wright previously directed the Black Mirror episode, “Nosedive”, which starred Bryce Dallas Howard, who is the real life daughter of Ron Howard, who has a fake daughter in Arrested Development played by Isla Fisher, whom I spent the whole movie mistaking for Amy Adams. That fact is more fun than watching this movie.

Should you see this film: This was not very good. I watched this as a double header of ‘books about women that became movies recently’ alongside Those Who Wish Me Dead, and I wish I had stopped with that one. Despite a pretty solid cast here, the film only really shines when they are all in the same scene which is exactly once. Don’t bother.