Last Night in Soho — a disturbingly beautiful look at London’s haunting past ★★★★★
Last Night in Soho is a vivid masterpiece that transports the audience into the dizzying world of the 60s through the eyes of Eloise Turner (Thomasin McKenzie), an aspiring fashion designer, who discovers her dreams show her apparitions of the past.
Director and co-writer Edgar Wright, renowned for Baby Driver and Shaun of the Dead, proves he can tackle any genre, not missing a beat in his first dip into the world of psychological horror. Wright’s jaw-droppingly beautiful recreation of 1960s London is stunning to see, with the surface layer of glitz and glam coming through in the warm vibrant colours and golden hues, which slowly slip away to gloom as the movie progresses.
Wright is truly a master at pacing: the mix of slow builds and sharp reveals leave the audience entranced and ready to be taken back to the past to learn more about Sandie (Anya Taylor-Joy), an aspiring singer who Eloise visits in her sleep. Eloise begins to spiral as the movie goes on and the past begins to haunt her in the present, as the mystery of what happened to Sandie takes centre stage.
Taylor-Joy, best known for her role as Beth in The Queen’s Gambit, plays a fashionable and witty young woman trying to make her way into the world of showbiz. Her character is a direct contrast to Eloise, who is a shy student struggling to adapt to the harsh reality of university life.
The creative shots, making use of reflective surfaces and over the shoulder angles, remind the audience throughout of Eloise and Sandie’s ghostly mirrored duality. In many ways, Last Night in Soho’s use of camera work is eerily similar to Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan, which also challenges the notion of what a horror movie is by removing the idea of monsters. While Eloise is haunted by the past in her sleep, Last Night in Soho is far from a ghost movie.
The thrilling cinematography and climactic script are enhanced further by a beautifully nostalgic soundtrack and scores by Oscar and Emmy-winning composer Steven Price.
Last Night in Soho is everything I could have wanted from a mysterious psychological thriller. It is a masterpiece that leaves you guessing right up to the pivotal moment, then leaves you speechless as the credits roll.
