Have you got animosity towards your neighbour? Do you think the enmity could not possibly get any worse? And, more importantly, do you believe the English are framing you for crimes you haven’t committed? Boy, do I have a film for you… Thea Sharrock’s Wicked Little Letters brings a true yet largely forgotten story onto the silver screen, illustrating just how utterly absurd neighbourly tensions can get.
The film is a period-piece comedy set in post-WW1 England and based on true events. It follows the story of Edith Swan (Olivia Colman), a devout and pious spinster from Littlehampton, who receives mysterious letters laden with horrific insults towards her. She accuses her neighbour, wild-spirited Rose Gooding (Jessie Buckley), of sending the letters. However, not everything is as it seems, as local “woman police officer” Gladys Moss (Anjana Vasan) suspects something to be amiss about the case, and gathers the townswomen to investigate.
The film is a fun matinee comedy, filled to the brim with deadpan jokes, period-atypical profanity and surprising plot twists, guaranteeing a wonderful and enjoyable time. While likely not a film one would want to watch with their parents and young siblings, it is definitely one I would recommend for a girls’ night out (or, really, any kind of friends’ outing), as, even if the film itself brings out no laugh in you, the roaring laughter of the crowd around you surely will!
“Beyond the deadpan jokes and creative insults, the film’s setting allows it to tackle societal issues, such as that of women’s liberation and Irish-English relations.”
However, comedy is only one of the things the movie aims for. Beyond the deadpan jokes and creative insults, the film’s setting allows it to tackle societal issues, such as that of women’s liberation and Irish-English relations. The neighbours become a microcosm of a larger dynamic of the post-Irish-liberation climate in England, as Edith and her father, “traditional” English people, baselessly accuse Rose, an Irish immigrant they consider to be unsuitable for their neighbourhood due to her “wild” nature. Rose suffers from many hands, whether it is Edith, who puts all the blame for the letters on her, or the barristers, who, in court, bring up her status as an immigrant, insinuating she has a sinister past to hide. At some point, Rose asks the other characters why she would write these offensive letters when they know she could just say the same things to their face instead: Rose is an outsider and a rebel, and Littlehampton perceives her as a threat for both her nationality and free spirit.
Additionally, the film participates in the discussion about women’s suffrage and liberation. A big way the theme presents itself is through the portrayal of the integration of women in the police, which was, up until then, a fully male work field, as well as addressing the perception of the Irish by English society – often all at once. While around a hundred years have passed since the events of the film, the themes remain relevant to this day, making the film feel as contemporary as it is a period piece. In the film, policemen in positions of power take Gladys Moss’s ideas as a joke and refuse to let her participate in the case, rather having her stick to “woman police” tasks, such as visiting Littlehampton’s women and having tea with them to reassure them that crimes are being solved effectively.
“The neighbours become a microcosm of a larger dynamic of the post-Irish liberation climate in England, as Edith and her father, “traditional” English people, baselessly accuse Rose, an Irish immigrant they consider to be unsuitable for their neighbourhood due to her “wild” nature.”
Wicked Little Letters is a film that has something for everyone: whether you love dark comedies, obscure true stories or are interested in the culture (shock) of early twentieth-century England, there will be something that will grab your attention. While it is no Oscar contender, and will likely primarily attract a matinee-goer demographic, the film meets the standards it sets for itself by being a worthwhile watch that can stand proudly as a film of its genre.
Wicked Little Letters will be screening in Ireland from 23 February
WORDS: Agne Kniuraite
