Tuesday, March 19, 2024
Monday, March 18, 2024
Now Showing: The Woman Upstairs
The Woman Upstairs
Genre: Drama/Suspense
Director: Rose Glass
Writer: Rachel Hallett Hardcastle
Based on the novel by Claire Messud
Cast: Anne Hathaway, Sofia Boutella, Mark Ghanime, Kaylen Luke, Lizzy Caplan, Christopher McDonald
Plot: When Reza Shahid (Kaylen Duke) shows up in Nora Eldridge's (Anne Hathaway) third-grade classroom, Nora falls in love with him. She's touched by his foreignness, and then she recognizes him as the boy she had seen at the supermarket a week ago: when she had dropped some apples. Nora isn't sure how she became such a good schoolteacher. One parent calls her "the Gerber baby of school teachers." She doesn't have children of her own. Teaching is just practice, something safe to do till she can start. But, even despite her success as a teacher, she still views herself as a failure. Reza's mother, Sirena (Sofia Boutella), is an accomplished artist. Nora met Sirena when Reza was bullied by older children. Sirena comes to the school to confer with Nora and the principal. Nora assures Sirena that everything will be done to discipline the bullies. She is disarmed by her beauty and her foreignness. Nora falls in love with Sirena's skin. Nora's principal calls the older boys who bullied Reza to her office and disciplines them. Still, Sirena nevertheless calls Nora at home to ask about the incident. Nora shares her concern that the older boys will lash out again because of Reza's foreignness. Nora wonders whether she is only attracted to Sirena's foreignness. Nora wonders whether she's experiencing her "Lucy Jordan" moment, the moment when she realizes that life's passed her by. She'll never do the things she thought she'd do.
Sirena doesn't show up for back-to-school night. Still, when she meets Nora at the coffee shop, Sirena tells Nora about her husband, Skandar (Mark Ghanime). Sirena says that her husband is a historian. Sirena tells Nora that as an only child, Reza has had a difficult transition to America. Nora says that he's learning English quickly, but she changes the topic to ask Sirena about her art. Sirena tells Nora that her installations consist of "lush gardens and jungles made out of household items and refuse." Sirena has a commission to build Alice's Wonderland, and she is thinking about renting studio space. Nora's very interested in getting back to making art. The two women make plans to see the studio and possibly share it.
Nora says there comes a time in life when you have to decide whether you're going to live the life you thought you'd live or whether you're going to settle into some routine and let the years pass you by. Nora went to college in Middlebury, Vermont. She studied art and planned to live an independent life. Her mother was thirty-one when Nora was born, and Nora remembers her mother's happiness. When Nora was seven, her mother had a breakdown. She made Nora promise that she'd never get stuck in an unhappy marriage. Nora has always tried to understand how her mother resigned herself to her life. When her mother was diagnosed with ALS, Nora put her dreams of making art on hold and took care of her for four years until her death. Nora's mother never asked her to give up her life. Still, she is afraid that by becoming a 'dutiful daughter,' she gave up her opportunity to live her artistic dream.
Nora meets Sirena at the studio that Sirena found and agrees to split the rent there. She doesn't know what she'll be working on, but she's glad to be back in the studio making art. When Nora meets her friend Didi's (Lizzy Caplan) adopted baby, Nora doesn't want her art to be humored as the baby's being humored. She hasn't wanted to show people her little dioramas to fear their reactions. She simply wants to be 'gotten' or understood by people close to her. Her time in the studio makes her feel more alive. She and Sirena work there side by side. Sometimes, Nora is so engrossed in her work that she doesn't even notice that Sirena is gone. While Nora's working on a miniature replica of Emily Dickinson's room—with plans to make tiny rooms for Virginia Woolf, Alice Neel, and Edie Sedgwick. Sirena is working on her Wonderland. Nora is utterly delighted to be working on her small rooms. Still, sometimes when Sirena leaves, she realizes how alone she is in her place.
Once she gets started working at the studio, Nora starts trying to make every excuse to spend time there. She and Sirena start a real friendship as they art, drinking wine together from chipped cups. Sirena seems to be happy with the arrangement as well. The time she spends in the studio is her time to hide from her husband and child and their demands.
Two weeks before Christmas, on a night when Nora is working alone in the studio, Skandar comes to the studio looking for Sirena. Nora invites him in for tea. Skandar says that Sirena's delighted to be working with an artist who's so severe. Sirena rarely speaks about Skandar. When she goes home after the evening is over, she Googles the couple and finds they are famous in Europe. Shortly after that, she dreams that she and Skandar are naked in bed together, and he tells her that Sirena doesn't mind.
Reza attacked again in a snowball fight with a snowball packed with rocks, cutting near the eye. Nora takes him to the hospital, calls Sirena, and holds Reza while he receives stitches. This incident shakes Sirena and Skandar, making them anxious to return home. Sirena tells Nora that she's a true friend at the hospital. The boy who hurt Reza is expelled, but Nora doesn't contact Sirena or Reza.
Nora visits with her father (Christopher McDonald) for the holidays and then visits her friend Didi, who elicits the story of Nora's affection for Sirena and her son. Nora feels worse for talking about her feelings. She hopes that they'll be real friends. Didi tries to make Nora feel better by making light of the situation.
When school starts again, Nora has finished Emily Dickinson's room, and Reza has returned to her classroom. When Nora sees Sirena again, Sirena's overjoyed to see her and invites her for dinner. Nora doesn't know to trust her when she says how much she's missed her. Then, the two of them resolve to get to work. "Au travail" becomes a kind of watchword between them. Nora is afraid that Sirena only pities her when she invites her to dinner at the house, but she accepts the invitation, nonetheless. Sirena and Skandar talk about the difficulties of being foreigners in America. They don't feel that they can escape from their histories or the history of conflicts in Europe and the Middle East.
At the end of the night, Skandar walks Nora home. When she hears about this later, Didi supposes that he wants to make love with her. She remains afraid of rejection at the same time that she dreams about some kind of unprecedented intimacy.
Sirena and Skandar ask Nora to babysit. She's unsettled about serving her student's family this way, but Sirena portrays it as a kind of intimacy. Sirena offers payment, which Nora declines. When Sirena embraces her, Nora isn't sure whether she is becoming part of the family or just being taken advantage of. Nora babysits for Reza for the next few months. Nora can see the possibility that she was just being flattered, but also she knows that the Shahids loved her.
Sirena begins to build Wonderland in earnest. She shows Nora her blueprint, and Nora admires her all the more. Sirena "opens doors to possibility, to the barely imagined." Sirena is going to build her installation in the studio, and she asks for Nora's help. Again Nora feels as though she's being taken advantage of when she feels included in a creative partnership.
In a roundabout way, Nora asks Sirena whether there are people she doesn't like. Sirena says that when people become irritating, she has to reject them. This implies that Nora hasn't become annoying, so she hasn't been denied yet. Nora and Sirena keep getting closer. One night Nora is terrified by how strongly she wants Sirena for herself. When Nora tells Didi about her affection for Sirena, Didi and her friend are skeptical. They think Nora just has a crush on Sirena, and they're sure that she doesn't feel a full-fledged lesbian desire.
As Wonderland comes together, Nora finishes Emily Dickinson's room and starts on Alice Neel's and Edie Sedgwick's. She says that making the rooms is something she does for herself. One night while listening to music as Nora works and dances through the finished parts of Wonderland. She takes off her shirt and takes Polaroid photographs of herself in her bra. Nora no longer needs to sleep as she spends hours at the studio before going home.
Every time she babysits for Reza, Skandar walks her home afterward. Skandar and Nora talk about what it means to be American, and Skandar tells her what it is like to be Lebanese. Her walks with Skandar get longer as spring comes, and sometimes they just circle Nora's block while Skandar talks and talks. He tells her stories about Lebanon and his experiences in the war. He complains to Nora that Americans know only the biggest and worst facts about foreign countries. Her walks with Skandar become distinctive in her memory. One night, he tells her that Nora needs to find a way to feed herself. She describes herself as a ravenous wolf. Skandar's surprised, but he comments that Nora must ask for what's needed. Nora has always been afraid of creating her satisfaction, so it has always been easier to care for others.
After speaking with Skandar, she feels like talking to Sirena, declaring her feelings. Filled with apprehension, she heads to the studio, ready to assert herself, but Sirena isn't there. At school the next day, Nora asks Reza about his mother but gets told that she's gone away.
When Sirena comes back to the studio, she tells Nora she went to New York. Sirena finally tells Nora the date for her Paris opening. Nora's disconcerted to find that the opening's only two months away. Suddenly she's terrified of losing Sirena and their friendship. On Friday, when Nora knows that Sirena won't be coming to the studio, Nora drinks wine and takes more Polaroid photos of herself. She goes so far as to tiptoe into the Wonderland forest and masturbate, which makes her feel a brief unashamed for an unhidden time.
Energized by her creative work, Nora takes her father out to brunch. Nora's father surprises her by saying that her mother was very much in control of her life and his. Nora thought that she never had been. Nora decides not to go to the studio all weekend. When she calls Sirena, Sirena doesn't pick up. All week, Sirena doesn't return Nora's call, which leaves Nora on tenterhooks. When she goes to the studio on Thursday, Sirena's there with some other artists listening to music, drinking, and dancing. One woman's a dancer who will twirl through Wonderland while the others film her. Suddenly she feels like a teacher and not an artist, and the gulf between her and Sirena is forbidding. When she sees the Polaroids on her table again as she's leaving, Nora's filled with shame.
The next time Nora goes to the studio, Sirena's fellow artists have all left. They have sent her a video of dancing in Wonderland. Sirena tells Nora how the video will be used in the installation. Sirena says there will be different stations in the installation with headphones. Sirena shows Nora photographs of seven different women whose images will be printed on large canvases as part of the installation to represent the seven stages of life. As Nora gives Sirena her opinion about the photos, she feels both irritated and elated. Some of the pictures are of Sirena herself, and Nora's disconcerted by these images. When Sirena distinguishes herself and Nora by saying that Nora's creation doesn't have deadlines, the implication is once again that Nora isn't an artist like Sirena. In the end, Nora only feels like one among many of Sirena's admirers. She gives Sirena her admiration, but that seems to be the only thing Sirena wants from her.
Sirena goes to New York to meet with the gallery owners who are courting her. In the meantime, Nora feels to reassure herself about her work's value. One Friday night, Skandar comes to the studio looking for Sirena, but Sirena isn't there. Nora shows Skandar her work. Skandar asks her why the celebration doesn't take up more space. When he puts his hands on her, Nora no longer cares whether she is an artist like Sirena or not. Nora's just a hungry person who wants to be accepted for who she is. Nora and Skandar talk about what happened and agree that it couldn't continue. She's shocked to see Sirena again. For Sirena, nothing has changed. She is still herself, totally wrapped up in the Wonderland project. The next time Nora babysits for Reza, Skandar isn't there. Sirena is distracted before she leaves for the night, and Nora's afraid that she has upset her. Sirena says, "Of course not," but this doesn't entirely console Nora. When Sirena comes home, Skandar's in with her.
Sirena flies to Paris in advance of the installation. Nora and her students start to get excited about coming to the Wonderland installation. Sirena and Nora thought that this would be good for the children. At the same time that it would give Sirena good video footage of children enjoying the Wonderland installation. When the kids arrive, Sirena gives them instructions to make themselves comfortable and explore the installation as if they were Alice. The installation is too small for all the students, so one group makes paper-mâché masks with Nora while the other group explores. Nora sees Reza punch another student. When she yells for them to stop, she's suddenly no longer Nora, Sirena's fellow artist. She's Nora, Ms. Eldridge, a school teacher. She has to discipline Sirena's child, and any familiarity between them seems to evaporate. Nora apologizes to Sirena at the end of the afternoon. When Sirena says that soon she'll be gone to Paris, there is a new gulf between them. The next time Nora goes to the studio, she still has to clean up from the children's visit. She recalls her intimacy with Skandar. Skandar was Nora's Black Monk, "the one who could convince me of my substance, of genius, of the significance of my thoughts and efforts." When you are the Woman Upstairs, "no one thinks of you first." She goes to bed at her Aunt Baby's Rockport home, grieving for the loss of what she thought she had in the Shahid family.
Moving some time into the future, Sirena never came back to Cambridge. As the deadline approaches, Sirena tells her that she has only been playing at making the installation. Sirena takes Reza out of school, and after a short period, Sirena and Reza are gone. Nora doesn't go to the airport to see them off.
Nora sees Sirena in New York years later. They meet for drinks when Sirena comes to New York for an opening. Nora is ashamed to still be a schoolteacher. She's been following Sirena and Skandar in the news. She has felt that her life has gotten further and further away from theirs. Sitting down over drinks, Sirena remembers her year in Cambridge as a hard, dark time. However, she tells Nora that Alice's postcard in Wonderland is still on their fridge at home.
After seeing Sirena, Nora goes to the Brooklyn Museum to see the Wonderland installation. It makes her feel all of her love for Sirena again. She feels alive the way that she felt when she was working alongside Sirena. Sirena says that the Woman Upstairs is a character who isn't disappointed when she finds out that her ex-lover has visited her city without contacting her. She says this with a certain ruefulness and with resignation. She searches for signs of what she had meant to them.
In Paris, Nora has seen enough of the sights to know which ones to rave about. Still, the journey only becomes personal for her when she returns to Paris after traveling on the continent. Sirena and Skandar invite her for dinner, and she says that they make her feel welcome, warm, and part of the family again.
Nora sees the sights in Paris. After visiting the Musee d'Orsay, she visits a gallery where six videos from Wonderland are on display. The videos themselves are art objects and are for sale. In the last video, Nora looks, she recognizes herself in the Wonderland wasn't quite finished when she got drunk and masturbated in the flowers. Nora blacks out when she sees the video.
Nora is reeling from this discovery: the Woman Upstairs is revealed in her most intimate, humiliating moment. She and Sirena had set up the cameras that took this footage and wonders whether she'd have known that she was being filmed. Nevertheless, Nora's furious that Sirena is using the footage as part of her installation. Nora never got in touch with the Shahid family after that. The incident has made her so murderously furious that she no longer has a question about feeling alive. "My anger is a colossus." She pledges that she'll live in the fullest meaning of the term now.
Top 10 Films Starring Anne Hathaway and/or Sofia Boutella
Sherman J. Pearson here for another Top 10. This round sees two of LRF's most popular leading ladies, Anne Hathaway and Sofia Boutella, in The Woman Upstairs. For this round's Top 10 I decided to take a look at both actresses' filmographies. Note: I was given a sneak peak of The Woman Upstairs, so it is eligible for this Top 10 list.
Top 10 Films Starring Anne Hathaway and/or Sofia Boutella
10. INFINITY (Hathaway)
9. Extra Ordinary (Boutella)
8. Alex + Ada (Boutella)
7. The Woman Upstairs (BOTH)
6. Uncharted 3 (Boutella)
5. Gathering of the Wolves (Hathaway)
4. Eileen (Hathaway)
3. Uncharted 2 (Boutella)
2. Elektra (Boutella)
1. Calamity (Hathaway)
Sunday, March 17, 2024
Release: Under the Influence
Under the Influence
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Director: Andrew Dominik
Writer: Chad Taylor
Cast: Sandra Bullock, Robert Downey Jr., Thomasin McKenzie, Madelyn Cline, Michael Gandolfini, Marisa Abela, Victoria Pedretti, Thomas Doherty, Edward Burns, Frank Collison
Budget: $58,000,000
Domestic Box Office: $77,694,056
Foreign Box Office: $48,885,503
Total Profit: $7,000,004
Reaction: Four films in a row for the studio have made a profit, but the numbers have not been particularly high on those films. Director Andrew Dominick, not seen in LRF since Season 5, has yet to helm a flop.
In Development
The Champ: The Ben Affleck boxing drama, The Champ, has added Chris Messina (Resident Evil 5, Alien: Out of the Shadows), Seth Gilliam (Sinatra, "The Walking Dead"), Halston Sage (Starman, Sunny Days) and Aldis Hodge (Black Adam, "City on a Hill") to its cast. Messina will play a boxing promoter who offers Affleck a chance to fight the current heavyweight champ, to be played by Aldis Hodge. Gilliam will play a boxing trainer, while Sage will play a love interest of Affleck's character. Gavin O'Connor directs the film from a script by APJ.
Becoming Carole Lombard: Catherine Keener (Girl in the Fog, Maria), Andrew Scott (X-Men: Sinister, Prodigy) and Rupert Friend (Buried Memories, Adr1ft) have joined the Lili Reinhart-led Carole Lombard biopic. Friend has been cast as Hollywood producer Walter Wanger, Keener will play the mother of Lombard, while Scott is set as movie star William Powell - who was also Lomabrd's first husband. Greta Gerwig is directing the film from an original script by Ben Collins.
Northrock: Verge of War: Seven seasons after Northrock premiered, the film is now getting a sequel. Jamie Dornan (Northrock, X-Men: Sinister), Emma Watson (Pompeii, The Giver of Stars) and Paul Bettany (The Boy in the Suitcase, Northrock) are all back from the first film as Rickard Swann, Tula Swann and Din the Druid, respectively. Also back is director Jordan Vogt-Roberts (Swamp Thing 2, Northrock) and original writer Jimmy Ellis (Thorne, Task Force X: Jungleland), who has been joined by co-writer HG Hansen (The Hulk 2, We Were Never Here).
Last Days of the American Cowboy: Boyd Holbrook (Photographs, Death in the Shadows) and Riley Keough (Everything Will Be Alright) are set to headline modern wester, Last Days of the American Cowboy for Chilean director Pablo Larrain (Spencer, El Conde) and writer Sammy-Jo Ellis (The Lights, Flick). Holbrook plays an old school cowboy struggling to adapt to modern society, while Keough will play a photojournalist inspired by his story.
Five Boroughs: Writers Jimmy Ellis (Thorne, Task Force X: Jungleland) and John Malone (Superman: Exile, The Spectre) have re-teamed for crime drama Five Boroughs. Jeremy Allen White (The Tomb of Dracula, American Idiot), Toby Wallace (Batgirl, Black Hole), Joey King (Mimsley and Me, Titans: Evil Incarnate) and Adam Sandler (Death of a Comic, D.I.C.K.) will star in the film. White, Wallace and King will play a group of siblings who find themselves in-debt to a mobster played by Sandler. The repay the debt, White and Wallace must make a series of deliveries for Sandler that takes them across New York City's five boroughs. Josh and Benny Safdie (American Dream, Time Out!) are helming the project.
The Dogs of Winter: Matthew McConaughey (Blue Ridge, Spider-Man vs The Sinister Six), Sean Penn (Supergirl, The Tournament) and Zoe Saldana (The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass, He Kills) have been set to star in an adaptation of "California Noir" novel The Dogs of Winter by Kem Nunn. Penn will play a photographer, McConaughey will play a legendary surfer, while Saldana play McConaughey's wife. David Fincher (Heights, Cold) is directing the film from an adaptation by Chad Taylor (The Omen, The Beat Goes On).
Saturday, March 16, 2024
Now Showing: Under the Influence
Under the Influence
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Director: Andrew Dominik
Writer: Chad Taylor
Cast: Sandra Bullock, Robert Downey Jr., Thomasin McKenzie, Madelyn Cline, Michael Gandolfini, Marisa Abela, Victoria Pedretti, Thomas Doherty, Edward Burns, Frank Collison
Plot: Susan Carter (Sandra Bullock) is in tears as she hugs her daughter Grace (Thomasin McKenzie). They have traveled cross-country for Grace to start her freshman year of college in San Francisco. Susan says that she is so proud of her daughter and reminds her to call her every week. Grace jokingly asks if it can be every other week and they hug again. Grace tells her mom to drive safe. The opening credits roll as we see a montage of Susan driving from California to upstate New York on her own with her own thoughts.
On campus, Grace is clearly overwhelmed by the college experience. While she is bright academically, she feels socially out of her element in an atmosphere like this. She forgoes some ice-breaker events at her dorm to instead start studying at the library. While there, she runs into Alison McBride (Victoria Pedretti), a second-year student who went to Grace’s same high school. They start catching up when Alison realizes that Grace is already feeling out-of-place. She asks Grace if she has made any plans for the weekend and then invites her to a party. Grace declines the invite but says that they should keep in touch.
On the first day of class, Grace begins heading to class but gets lost in the multi-part building where the classroom is located. Ian (Michael Gandolfini) finds himself similarly lost and asks if she is looking for Room 14D. They realize they are looking for the same place and so they solve it together. They find the open seats and sit in different parts of the room but Grace looks back and finds Ian smiling at her.
At her home, Susan finds herself adjusting to being an empty-nester. As someone who works from home, she finds the amount of time she spends there to be particularly lonely. She calls up some of her friends and says they should go out for drinks. While there, they ask about how Grace is doing. She admits that she does worry about how Grace’s shyness might make things tough at first but she hopes she’s adjusting well. One of her friends jokingly says that Grace must’ve got that shyness from her mom because it certainly wasn’t her dad and Susan is inclined to agree.
On Friday night, Grace lays in bed scrolling through videos on her phone as she hears loud noises outside her window. She takes a peak and sees other freshmen dressed up heading to parties. She stares at the ceiling looking unsatisfied before finally picking her phone back up and texting Alison. Later in the night, she arrives at a rather anonymous two-story house and nervously knocks on the door as loud music blasts from the inside. After no one answers, she considers texting Alison but then just decides to turn around and leave. As she is walking away, the door opens and all of Morrison Lee (Thomas Doherty) is taking up the frame. He asks if she knocked and she says she’s here to see Alison but might have the wrong house. Morrison smiles and says she’s come right where she belongs.
Grace enters the house and, while initially unassuming, finds it to be exorbitant on the inside. It is immediately clear that she has never experienced anything like it. Alison spots her and says she’s glad Grace could make it. She starts her on a tour of the house, noting that she has already met Morrison. Grace starts to ask more about Morrison and tries to ask if he is dating someone here. Alison responds that Morrison is actually a townie (and has never been a student here) but he is dating one of the girls that lives here. Amidst the crowd, Alison points out Ella Edmonds (Marisa Abela), her friend that lives here. Ella joins the conversation and she is naturally outgoing so her and Grace hit it off immediately. Grace tells Ella that she met her boyfriend and Ella is quick to say that Morrison is not her boyfriend. He is dating her roommate Josie. Grace blushes at her mistake. After Ella leaves, Alison tells Grace that Josie is a bit more introverted than Ella so she’s more hesitant to outsiders. They descend into the crowd as the party carries into the night.
A few weeks later, Grace is on FaceTime with her mom. Grace is talking about her classes and Susan says she already assumed her daughter was doing great in those so then she follows up by asking about the social life. Grace is more hesitant in her answer, saying it is much different than high school. She says that it was great reconnecting with Alison and having her here has been great for the transition. Susan is so happy to hear this and says to tell Alison she said hi. After the call, Grace finds that she has a text from Ella asking if she’d like to hang out. She smiles.
At Ella’s house, Grace knocks and once again Morrison answers, this time shirtless. “You again?” he says with a smile. He invites her in and apologizes for his lack of attire. Ella says that Morrison almost never wears a shirt. When Ella asks how she is doing, Grace says she has been a little stressed about an upcoming exam. Ella offers her Adderall and says that it always helps her focus. Grace isn’t sure and says she doesn’t do much drugs. Ella backs off and says she doesn’t want it to seem like she is pressuring her at all. As they talk, the front door opens and Josie Baumann (Madelyn Cline) enters. She calls for Morrison and asks if he can help with some bags. Josie spots Grace and seems to eye her up and down before introducing herself. There is something striking about Josie but she can’t tell what exactly it is. The eyes? The voice?
And then enters Jed (Robert Downey Jr.). Josie introduces him as her father and says that he is going to be staying here for a little bit. When Jed shakes Grace’s hand, she immediately understands where Josie gets her aura from. He asks her where she is from and this starts up a conversation about some of his own time in New York as a consultant on Wall Street. He then moves on to Ella and begins getting to know her. Ella says that Josie has had a lot of good things to say about him. Grace looks at Jed and Josie with wonder.
Before class, Grace takes some of Ella’s adderall to prepare for her exam. After she finishes, she is walking out at the same time as Ian. He asks her how she thinks she did and she says pretty good. She asks the same of him and he says probably worse than her. He apologizes for not asking for her name last time and says Grace. Now that that’s out of the way, he asks Grace if she would like to go to hang out sometime. She looks at him surprised and he says he knows that was bold but he was always the shy kid in high school and he wants to turn a new leaf in college. She smiles and says she feels the exact same way. She accepts.
Jed cooks dinner for the housemates and holds court with his stories. Jed speaks vaguely about his time working in the government and seemingly never stops talking but they’re always interesting so no one seems to mind. Well, that’s not completely true. When Jed tells a story about arranging a meeting between Robert De Niro and Mikhail Gorbachev, he can tell that Morrison is checked out and he asks Josie’s boyfriend if he knows who Gorbachev is. Morrison shakes his head and Jed rolls his eyes.
The next night, Grace and Ian get some ice cream and they get to know each other better. Ian has lived in California his whole life but would like to get away after college. Grace understands but reveals that she moved all the way across the country to go here. He asks what her parents think of that and she explains that they divorced when she was young. Her dad loves her but thinks she should experience adult life to grow up a little. He didn’t even want her to go to college! Her mom, on the other hand, is always worried about her so being so far from home is probably tearing her up. Her phone begins buzzing and she says “speak of the devil”.
In New York, Susan tries to call Grace but her daughter doesn’t answer. After she tries again, Grace texts her that she is busy at the moment. Susan begins pacing and checks Grace’s social media feeds but everything seems relatively normal. She does see a recent picture on Grace’s Instagram with Josie tagged and Susan clicks on her profile but it is private. She goes on with her day, but a bit annoyed.
In the morning, Josie braids Grace’s hair and reveals that she has some exciting news. Her father has purchased a townhouse nearby and that they will be moving there. She says that Grace is welcome to “move in” as well, even if she technically has to stick to her dorm contract. Grace is elated to hear this and says that is indeed great news. Over the next couple of weeks, they move into Jed’s new townhouse and Grace moves most of her stuff there.
As the weeks go on, Jed begins to become increasingly like a house mother for the group of friends. He ensures that they clean and do household chores but also regularly holds makeshift therapy/life-coaching sessions, explaining that he had experience doing this during his time in the military. During one session, Ella begins to open up about a traumatic experience from her childhood. Sensing that she is uncomfortable about the others being around, Jed orders everyone to leave the room but her. As she tells the story, he takes her hand and caresses it to comfort her.
Grace runs into Alison at the grocery store. Alison is happy to see her and asks what Grace is up to. She mentions that she has gotten closer with Ella and Josie. Alison’s demeanor changes and she says she thinks that family is bad news and advises Grace to stay away. Grace is clearly annoyed by this comment so she reveals that she has actually moved in with them. Meanwhile, in New York, Susan converse with Alison’s mom at a yoga class. They talk about how great that their daughters got to reconnect in college.
Back at the townhouse, Josie is doing some sweeping when she notices that Ella isn’t around. She hears something upstairs and goes up to check, soon discovering that Ella is having sex with Jed in his room. She returns to cleaning and minding her own business.
Josie, Ella, and Grace plan to throw a party at the townhouse on the weekend. Grace invites Ian, who is excited to go to his first college party. When he arrives, he meets Josie and immediately understands what Grace is saying about a certain aura. Grace tells him to wait until she meets Josie’s dad. He does, and everyone else at the party does, later in the night when a fight erupts between Jed and Morrison. We learn that Josie has broken up with him and Morrison suspects that she did it on her father’s advice. Jed confirms, saying he knows his daughter can do better than a college drop out who doesn’t know his Russian diplomats from household chemical names. They get in each other’s faces and Morrison accuses Jed of being insecure that he’s past his prime and so he’s threatened by Morrison’s youthful masculinity. He storms out before they come to blows but the mood of the party is muted afterwards.
At 1am Eastern time, Susan lays in bed wide awake. She tries Facetiming without letting her know beforehand. Grace, being as drunk as she’s ever been, answers. Things feel immediately off and Grace soon sobers up to realize she is in a call with her mom. She hangs up and then laughs about it after with Ella.
Susan is so frustrated she begins to cry. She searches for Alison’s social media and sends her a message. She asks if she knows how Grace is doing as hasn’t heard from her in weeks and is beginning to get worried. The next day, she hears back from Alison who admits that she is a bit worried about Grace after she has started to hang around Josie Baumann and her father Jed. She even tells Susan that Grace moved in with them recently. This leads Susan down a rabbit hole of looking into Jed Baumann. The man is clearly accomplished but, even on paper, something feels sketchy about him.
Susan contacts Jim Query (Frank Collison), the Dean of Students at the University. She would like to file a formal complaint against Jed Baumann but Query tells her there is nothing that his office can do about an off-campus living situation such as this. She angrily hangs up and then turns to her next option: Ronnie Carter (Edward Burns), Grace’s father. She tells him that she is worried about how Grace is doing in college but he seems rather nonchalant, despite being an ex-police detective. He says that she needs to let Grace have fun in college. Susan says it is not about that but Ronnie says that Grace has complained to him in the past about Susan being a helicopter parent. Ronnie says he will see what he can find on Baumann but that Susan needs to relax.
In the aftermath of the party, Jed convenes all of the housemates to the living room. He points out all of the damage done to various household objects and says that they will need to pay him back for this. He pulls out some sheets of paper and, after calculating the damages, he hands them each the amount they owe. Grace gets her paper and it is in excess of $20,000 - money she doesn’t have.
Afterwards, she is on the verge of tears in her room. She considers calling her mom for help but knows that she would essentially say “I told you so”. Ella visits her and they both are annoyed. Grace asks if Ella also got a slip and she confirms, even though her and Jed are “close”. Grace doesn’t know how she is going to pay for this and Ella reveals that she has made some money on the side recently through selling pictures and videos online. “Like sexual?” Grace asks. Ella says they don’t have to be but that is where the money is. Grace says she’ll consider it.
A few days later, Ian is sitting in class when he sees some male students in front of him looking at pictures of Grace on their phone. They even comment on how she used to be in this class, they think. Later that day, Ian goes to visit her about it and she doesn’t see what the big deal is. She is just exhibiting control over her body. Jed overhears them on the verge of arguing and offers to mediate. It soon turn into a therapy session about Ian’s time in college thus far. He admits that he is a bit confused about his sexuality and college isn’t helping this. This is the first time Grace has heard about this and now she feels bad about being mad at him. Jed says he likes Ian and that Grace should bring him around more often. Grace gets a text from Alison asking for Grace’s address as Alison found something of Grace’s that she wants to drop off.
Jed pulls Ella aside and asks how the money is coming along for the debt she owes him. She says she will have it to him soon and he says that, if she wanted to make even more, he knows some people that could find her some high-paying clients if she was interested in more than just pictures and videos. Ella says she would be open to it. He says he will hook her up but that she will need to give him a cut of the pay. But not to worry about that because it will be a lot of money for a young, attractive girl like her. He gives her a kiss.
Ronnie calls Susan and says that this Baumann guy is bad news. He had recently gotten out of jail for money laundering and seems to have been dishonorably discharged from the Navy. He was also arrested for abuse of his ex-wife ten years prior. Susan says she has heard enough. If the Dean of Students isn’t going to do anything about this, then she will do it herself. She buys a plane ticket to San Francisco for the following day.
While Josie and Ella are away, Jed says that Grace should invite her gay friend over. Ian is eager to come back but when he gets there, Jed’s intentions become unclear. He begins instructing both Grace and Ian to undress.
In a hotel room, Ella waits nervously for a man to arrive.
Susan arrives in San Francisco and takes a taxi to the address that Alison provides her. She checks her purse to confirm that she has a knife in there, just in case.
At the townhouse, Jed says that he will coach Grace and Ian through sex since it will be their first time. He tells Ian this should provide Ian some clarity about his sexuality as well. They begin to kiss but Ian is uncomfortable with the whole thing and scurries off in tears. There is a knock on the door and Jed threatens Grace to stay where she is. She says it is probably her friend just dropping off something of Grace’s. The person knocks again. Jed goes to answer the door and it is only Josie. She forgot her key. When she enters, she sees Grace naked but assumes that means that Jed has been hooking up with her. Grace makes a look to her as if to say “help me” but Josie says she will go to her room and mind her own business.
Jed sits down next to her and says not to worry about her friend. He will probably fail out of college anyways. He places his hand on her lap and chills are sent down her spine. Another knock on the door but this time it is immediately followed by the door being kicked in.
“Grace!” Susan yells as Grace is alarmed to hear her mother’s voice. Jed instinctively grabs his gun and points it at Susan as she turns the corner to see them, knife in hand. She instructs him to step away from her daughter and he says her daughter owes him. Susan looks to Grace and sees the fear in her daughter’s eyes - showing that she is no longer under Jed’s spell. He looks at her knife and asks what that is going to do against his gun. As he says this, a knife penetrates through his chest and he loudly inhales. Jed swings his fist backwards and catches Ian in the temple, who wielded the knife. Grace gets up to leave as Josie comes down to see about the commotion and is immediately shocked by seeing a knife in her father’s chest. She begins to scream at Susan when she sees the knife in her hands. Grace runs out and tells her mother they should leave but Susan gets in a tussle with Josie over the knife. Susan headbutts her and then, instead of leaving, goes over to Jed, who is reaching for his gun.
She kicks away the gun and kneels down to hold the knife to his throat. She warns him to never as much as think about her daughter ever again, using her knee to deepen pressure his wound. Police arrive on the scene as Susan puts her hands up and backs away from Jed.
On the steps of the home, Grace cries as she lays her head on her mother’s shoulder. Susan runs her hand through Grace’s hair and says it will all be OK.
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