by Olivia Riportella '25 on October 9, 2022
A&E Staff

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Arts & Entertainment

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A Review of Don’t Worry Darling

Olivia Wilde’s new production Don’t Worry Darling has arrived as one of the hottest movie messes of 2022. From drama amongst the cast and director to volatile audience reviews, this movie has surely attracted a lot of attention over the past few weeks, whether it be good or bad. The film ultimately received a lackluster score of 38 percent from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a “B-” score from audiences on CinemaScore. This comes as a disappointment due to much anticipation leading up to the film, with lead roles being portrayed by superstars Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, and Chris Pine.

The motion picture is a psychological thriller with Florence Pugh playing Alice Chambers, a 1950s housewife living in a chilling utopian community with her husband Jack (Harry Styles). When unusual occurrences start to develop, Alice worries that something is wrong in the neighborhood that she and Jack live in. Florence Pugh is reported as phenomenal in Wilde’s thriller, but unfortunately the story barely holds together. 

Wilde’s directing debut, Booksmart (2019), was a major critical success, leading to a multi-studio bidding war for the rights of her second film, Don’t Worry Darling, with New Line Cinema eventually winning. The film looks illusive from the outside, with the costume design of a dreamy golden and sky blue 1950s wardrobe, featuring handsome men in suits and beautiful dresses all around. It almost looks too good to be true, which is exactly the point. However, the problem is that Wilde focuses so much on surface and style that she does not follow a consistent, well-developed plot. Although Pugh manages to deliver a stellar performance, she almost single-handedly carries the entire film. 

Styles is a major draw for the motion picture, as his devout fan base continues to see the movie regardless of its ratings. According to Warner Bros, female viewers made up 66 percent of the audience during the movie’s opening weekend, which helped propel the box office performances. In addition, the studio reported that 52 percent of the weekend’s ticket sales were made by those under the age of 25. Despite this, Styles is still inexperienced in acting and wasn’t able to deliver a fully complex performance for his role.

Due to the drama surrounding the release of the motion picture and the devout fanbase of the lead actors, Don’t Worry Darling was still able to cash out at the box office. One of the executives shared prerelease projections from market research company NRG, which revealed expectations for the movie had whirled from $16 million (when tracking started in August) to $20 million around its explosive premiere at the Venice Film Festival on Sept. 5 where drama exploded amongst cast members. It went back down until estimates stayed around $20 million around release week, which was slightly above the $19.1 million that Don’t Worry Darling received at the North American box office. The release for the motion picture was solid, but overall, the movie may have not lived up to the anticipation.

by The Cowl Editor on October 28, 2021

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Arts & Entertainment

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Harry Styles’ “Love on Tour”

A Memorable Concert Experience Worth the Two-Year Wait

Grace Whitman ’22

 After being postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Harry Styles’ Love on Tour Concert is in full swing, with three shows hitting the Providence area last week. On Oct. 23 and 25, Styles performed at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, CT. Tickets for this show sold out in less than five minutes. Additionally, on Monday, Oct. 26, he made his way north to play at TD Garden. In an homage to the elaborate outfits for which the singer is infamous, concertgoers dressed in colorful flared pants, rhinestone jumpsuits, glitter, and feather boas—stray multicolored feathers from which covered the floors. Fans knew they had to dress to impress because there was a chance that Styles would see them in the audience. 

At the Oct. 23 show, Styles took center stage, dressed in red pants and a green shirt, a color combination that seemed to pay homage to his hit single “Watermelon Sugar,” and had the crowd on their feet as he opened the concert with “Golden,” a song from his album Fine Line. With a stage in the middle of the arena and two catwalks stretching on both ends, every fan was close enough to make a connection with the singer. He started the concert off by challenging everyone to have as much fun as he does, and the concertgoers certainly did. 

Styles radiates positivity and encourages everyone to “Treat People with Kindness.” Considering that everyone was away from one another for nearly two years, he motivated fans to really take note of how they felt to finally be back together. Styles’ fans adore him, and he made it clear that the feeling is mutual. 

The singer performed a perfect variety of songs, from ballads like “Cherry” and “Falling” to upbeat dance songs like “Only Angel” and “Adore You.” Fans were dancing so much that even the bleacher seats got a bit wobbly. 

About an hour into his set, Styles jokingly announced that if anyone wanted to go to the bathroom or get some water, they could not because it was time to dance. He then kicked off a 15-minute set of upbeat songs like “Canyon Moon,” “Treat People with Kindness”—during which he flew a pride flag that a fan brought around the stage—and One Direction’s “What Makes You Beautiful.”

Just when fans thought the show was over, Styles rose from below the stage to sing three of his most popular songs: “Sign of the Times,” his Grammy-winning single “Watermelon Sugar,” and “Kiwi.”

What makes a Harry Styles concert different from any other is the larger-than-life stage presence that he brings to every single show. From having the whole arena sing happy birthday to his mother who was at home in England, to juggling balls given to him by a fan, he knows how to make every show unique and exciting. Although Fine Line came out in 2019, finally being able to see Harry in concert was well worth the wait for fans.