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Have you ever had a nagging voice at the back of your head? One which tells you that you’re not worth it or that no one likes you? If not, then you’re probably in the lucky minority.
Violet (Olivia Munn) is dealing with such a problem. Not only does she have to live with her screenwriter friend, Red (Luke Bracey) while her house is repaired. She also has to navigate her life as a Hollywood executive while her inner thoughts (voiced by Justin Theroux) are constantly bullying her. The voice takes three main forms: the voice, as writing on the screen, and as a ringing noise that covers the screen in red. Despite everything, Violet goes about her life with a brave face, pretending everything is alright when we, the audience, know that isn’t exactly the case. She is also haunted by bad memories that often resurface thanks to her inner thoughts. While it makes her life difficult, she still manages to power through.
The inclusion of the voice, the ringing noise, and the on-screen writing are incredibly jarring and out of place at first. Although, it soon becomes part of a fascinating character study of a woman just trying to live her life with an antagonist living inside her own head. It soon becomes apparent that without the addition of the voice, the film wouldn’t have been half as interesting as it ended up being. The story, on paper at least, isn’t as intriguing as the end product.
Violet has a great cast with Munn — whose Violet is quiet and somewhat introverted. She gives one of her best performances of her career thus far. Though his appearances are quite fleeting, Bracey gives the film a great extroverted character to contrast his temporary housemate. He also provides some great charm that the film is sadly lacking. Even though Theroux makes no physical appearance, his deep and interrupting voice is a force to be reckoned with. He may be the intrusive voice created by Violet’s own mind, but you’ll loathe hearing what he has to say a lot of the time.
One of the downsides to Violet is the plot itself. The issue is that there is very little of a plot, to begin with. Violet works almost like a “week-in-the-life” film since we follow Violet on her day-to-day routine. The film is mostly propelled by the conversations between Violet and the people she interacts with. From her snarky colleagues who technically work under her to a former love interest that she bumps into.
Violet will be a hit or a miss for many people. However, if you view it as an experimentative study of characters, you may enjoy it more. Violet is a good film to watch if you’re studying writing because of how the inner voices are projected from Violet to the audience.
I got to watch Violet as part of the SXSW Film Festival. It currently has no release date, but this page will be updated once one is announced.
