Written and directed by Ethan Coen of the Coen Brothers, Honey Don’t! is a neo-noir dark comedy detective film. The film stars Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza and Chris Evans, and is now showing in cinemas worldwide.

Set in Bakersfield, California, the story centres around Honey O’Donahue, a small-town private investigator who delves into a series of strange deaths tied to a mysterious church. Her investigations could be affected by her personal life, leaving her in a position to decide which is more important.

Margaret Qualley stars as Honey O’Donahue, who shines brightest on the screen. Her performance fits perfectly with this film’s style and her character being a film noir-like detective. She maintains her composure throughout the majority of the film, keeping that calm demeanour even when she does certain things that jeopardise the case she’s working on. She also narrates a lot of her scenes with the same personality, which helps provide context to what’s going on in her mind.

Aubrey Plaza plays MG Falcone, a police officer who assists with Honey’s case, and the two also have a sexual relationship without an emotional attachment, but this could also affect both their jobs and the case.

Aubrey’s characters are best known for their deadpan, sarcastic personalities and dark humour, and her character in this film is a perfect example. Her performance also makes it difficult to determine if she could be more than just a fling for the main character.

Chris Evans portrays Reverend Drew Devlin, a cult leader of the mysterious church that’s the main focus of the case Honey is working on. To the public, he seems to be a well-respected man, but behind closed doors, there is a lot that the public doesn’t know about. Evans’ performance as the town’s reverend makes him the most memorable and entertaining character out of the whole cast, similar to the roles he played prior to becoming Captain America.

The film also stars Charlie Day as police detective, Marty Metakawich, Kristen Connolly as Honey’s older sister, Talia Ryder as Honey’s niece, Corinne, Heidi and Gabby Beans as Honey’s assistant, Spider, just to name a few. The film features a cast of diverse characters keeping audiences guessing about what their true motives are, but that’s also where the film shows many of its faults.

The film may keep audiences guessing, which is expected from a detective film, but there’s never a real payoff throughout the entire movie. It’s hard to go into detail without giving away spoilers, but Honey as a detective doesn’t actually seem that good a detective if you look at it realistically. She certainly has style and personality, but doesn’t have the substance. Even if she was supposed to be a detective who doesn’t achieve her goal, the film never makes a point of that, and she never really gets punished for it. When characters get killed, it’s usually done in a way or caused by someone you’d least expect, adding to the lack of payoff.

There are a lot of plot twists or what’s intended to be plot twists, but they seem to be for the sake of being random and unpredictable, and none of them feel rewarding. When they happen, they just happen, and there’s no real follow-up, so a lot of things just end up being left unresolved.

Honey Don’t! certainly has style and plenty of it. The posters, trailers, promotional material and certain scenes are a little misleading and could make you think it’s set in the 70s. Honey dresses like she’s from that era, whether she’s in work or casual attire, and she drives an old convertible, but the story is actually set in the modern day, with everyone using smartphones, one character mentioning COVID and more.

This isn’t a bad thing and helps the film stand out with its mix of old and new. The setting of Bakersfield in California provides a nice set piece with its small-town feel and desert scenery in the distance. Honey Don’t! may have the style, but it severely lacks the substance.

Overall Honey Don’t! has its moments, but falls short far too many times. When it seems to be setting up something big, it never capitalises on it. The Coen Brothers have made a lot of great films together, but they don’t get the same results when they go solo. Honey Don’t! sets up an interesting premise and has a good look, but leaves so many things unresolved and has no real substance.

Written by: Sammy Hanson