Splendid Satires: See How They Run & Do Revenge

I recently watched two movies that are both excellent examples of their genres whilst also serving as loving satires of those genres. Whether you’re into British murder or American vengeance, read on for more about these wickedly funny and smart films.

See How They Run: Heading into this film, I knew it was a period piece, had a phenomenal cast, and they needed to solve a murder. But boy oh boy, I was so ridiculously pleased to discover that it was an homage to Agatha Christie. And not just in theory: the movie is set in 1953 London and is built around the premise that someone has been murdered backstage in the theater where The Mousetrap has played its 100th show (The Mousetrap is still running in London today, and has now completed more than 28,000 shows). And if you’re a Christie fan, there may be a fun surprise for you towards the end of the movie.

Saoirse Ronan, ever wondrous, stars as Constable Stalker, a new recruit in the London police force. The police are trying out a diversity initiative to introduce more women into their ranks, so the Commissioner pairs her up with Inspector Stoppard (Sam Rockwell, who is great, but as one of the few non-British cast members, has a questionable accent). Stoppard is world-weary and has a bit of a drinking problem, while Stalker is eager to prove herself and likes to take copious notes, so we get a nice Odd Couple to investigate this murder and its numerous red herrings.

The supporting cast is stacked with the likes of David Oyelewo, Ruth Wilson, and Adrien Brody, and everyone looks like they are having the absolute time of their life swanning about in these wonderful costumes on fabulous sets, spouting classic murder mystery dialogue at each other. The script is exceedingly meta, with flashbacks and callbacks, and a running commentary on the classic structure of murder mysteries in general but Agatha Christie novels in particular. Written by Mark Chappell and directed by Tom George, this movie is a delight, fast-paced and captivating, and I had a big smile on my face for the entire runtime. I grew up on these books and to see them spoofed so lovingly but still with a truly well-plotted mystery at the core was a joy. Bring on the sequel.

Do Revenge: I hadn't heard of this movie until a friend (hi Joe!) mentioned reading an article about it. When the Netflix algorithm started pestering me to watch it, I figured I’d give it a shot, and within a few minutes, I was quickly sucked into a dazzling tale of high school drama and retribution.

Maya Hawke and Camila Mendes star as Eleanor and Drea, two girls who become unlikely allies when they decide to team up and ruin the lives of the people who turned them into social outcasts. They both attend Rosehill, an elite high school in Miami filled with entitled rich kids, and one of the main targets of their Revenge is Max (Austin Abrams), who took an intimate video Drea had sent him, shared it with the entire school, and promptly broke up with her. Now he’s dating some new girl and smarmily trying to spin the whole incident into an extracurricular club where he can pretend he's an ally to women. He has got to go down.

The casting of this movie is pristine, and reflects how far we’ve come with the Netflix Cinematic Universe. Hawke is (initially) playing a very similar character to her role as Robin in Stranger Things while Abrams is playing deliciously against type after his turn as the heartthrob in Dash & Lily (though let’s be honest, Dash is still an annoying rich teenage boy, just less evil than Max). The Headmaster of the school is Sarah Michelle Gellar, a brilliant tip of the hat to her turn in Cruel Intentions, and this movie is clearly a loving ode to all the 90s teen movies millennials grew up on. There’s a bit of a makeover a la She’s All That, there’s lots of airheads and high fashion a la Clueless, and while the film boasts a spectacular Gen Z soundtrack featuring the likes of Tate McRae and Olivia Rodrigo, the tail end of this movie features songs that are so quintessentially 90s that I have no illusions as to who the target audience is. It’s me.

Co-written and directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, this is a movie about all those teen movies we loved growing up, but boy there are some excellent twists and turns. The final half hour gave me whiplash; I was never quite sure which character had the upper hand and who was going to come out on top. And the production and costume design is pastel perfection. The plot is taking place in this bizarre universe that only exists in the movies, but is nonetheless insanely good fun. Watch this movie when you need two hours of solid entertainment, and if you’re a millennial, inject this directly into your veins for a solid shot of nostalgia with a Gen Z chaser. If this is what millenial women are doing when they’re given the power to write a script and direct a movie, praise be.