Nicole Kidman’s new erotic thriller plays with the conventions of gender roles, positions of power, as well as domination and submission.
Nicole Kidman recently starred in the Netflix comedy A Family Affair, which involved an unusual tryst with a younger man. Now, Kidman’s lust gets her into more than she bargained for again with the much darker-toned Babygirl. A24 has just released the trailer for this intense and unconventional erotic thriller that plays with power struggle, consent, grooming, and coercion. Our own Chris Bumbray enjoyed the provocative film at TIFF this year, saying in his review, “It’s controversial, but it’s also one of the sexier films to come along in recent memory. Kidman deserves major praise for her consistent refusal to play it safe as an actress.”
Babygirl stars Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos), Antonio Banderas (Desperado), Harris Dickinson (The Iron Claw), Sophie Wilde (Talk to Me), and Jean Reno (Léon: The Professional). Babygirl will cheekily be released in theaters just in time for Christmas viewings, giving it a December 25 release date. That’s the same weekend Disney is releasing Mufasa, Paramount is releasing Sonic the Hedgehog 3, and Angel Studios is releasing the faith-based post-apocalyptic film Homestead.
Reijn directed Babygirl from a screenplay she wrote herself. The story she crafted for this one centers on a high-powered CEO who puts her life’s work on the line when she begins a torrid affair with her much younger intern.
Reijn is producing Babygirl for MAN UP Film, alongside A24 and David Hinojosa of 2AM. Julia Oh, Zach Nutman, and Christine D’Souza Gelb of 2AM serve as executive producers. A24 is providing the financing. In addition to working with Reijn on Bodies Bodies Bodies and Babygirl, A24 also picked up the distribution rights to her feature directorial debut Instinct, which was selected as the official Dutch entry for the Best International Feature Oscar.
In his review, Chris Bumbray also highlights the film’s look, “Like Bodies Bodies Bodies, Babygirl is stylish. She reteams with her usual cinematographer, Jasper Wolf. She includes a propulsive score by Juan Cristóbal Tapia de Veer, composer of HBO’s The White Lotus (to which this shares some thematic similarities). Technically, the film is pretty impeccable, although at close to two hours, the pace starts to drag in the last act. The film’s ending is somewhat anti-climactic, although perhaps leaving it so open was the intent all along.
While Babygirl might be too provocative to work as an awards play for A24, the company’s notoriety, and the premise will no doubt make it a hotly debated film once it hits theaters later this fall.”
