Last Night in Soho

Full review: <a>https://www.tinakakadelis.com/beyond-the-cinerama-dome/2021/12/28/for-a-dollar-name-a-woman-last-night-in-soho-review<a> The plot follows shy, ‘60s-aesthetic-loving Eloise (Thomasin McKenzie) as she leaves her small country home and heads to the big city of London to attend fashion school. After one bad night in the dorm, she decides to move into a room offered for rent by an older woman, Miss Collins (the late, great Diana Rigg). On her first night in the new room, Eloise dreams of Soho in the fabulous ’60s through the eyes of aspiring lounge singer Sandie (Anya Taylor-Joy). That first dream, in which a wide-eyed Eloise watches the confident Sandie secure an audition from Jack (Matt Smith), is a true marvel. The swapping between Eloise in her pajamas and Sandie in her flowy go-go dress as they twirl with Jack is a beautiful technical and choreographic achievement. The flawless re-creation of the flashy lights and neon signs of Soho in the ’60s deserves immense praise. Presented on its own, that first dream sequence is a delight.

I found that Last Night in Soho took its sweet time getting me hooked, but as the first act was coming to a close, I was locked in. The movie constantly had me thinking what was to come next, trying to decipher what was the connection between the main characters were and why this was happening. There were scenes in this film that really had me on the edge of my seat, and I have not had that experience in a long time. I did not know much coming into the film, so I expected Anya Taylor-Joy to be the lead, but I was pleasantly surprised at the power performance that Thomasin McKenzie delivered. She really displayed the full range of emotion, showing shades of a shy timid and unsure girl to being a powerful and confident mistress of the night. But not only did these dueling personalities take center stage, but her ability to capture the horror and terror her visions continued to bring on. It was an amazing and I will definitely be tuning in to more of her films. I found the plot to be very good, on the surface it is somewhat simplistic, but it is delivered very well with each piece of the puzzle slowly being hand delivered by Edgar Wright. But by the third act, the twists are predictable, and the ending does not deliver as much as I would have liked. **Verdict:** _Excellent_

**Last Night in Soho seemed like a terrifying innovative horror flick but didn’t deliver.** Last Night in Soho promised a completely original fresh new horror film from the brilliant mind of Edgar Wright. The trailers were unnerving, tense, and scary, but unfortunately, that was where the horror stayed. The sequences set in the past were interesting and well done but as the murder mystery began to unfurl, so did the movie. The twists weren’t satisfying, and the terror didn’t measure up to its promise. The creativity of Last Night in Soho had so much potential but fell short.