I Care A Lot About…“I Care A Lot”
Netflix’s dark comedy does not disappoint
Rosamund Pike, Rosemund Pike, ROSEMUND PIKE!
With an artful toss of her head, and a tuck of her expertly cut bob so sharp it could slice through a brick, we are introduced to Marla Grayson (Rosamund Pike), in a sparsely populated court room as a scorned realtive of one of her wards curses expletives at her. Marla though, is unfazed, equipped with a poised veneer so succinct, it’s as if she’s done this before — and it’s because she has. Then soon almost instantly are we submerged into the ruthless capitalist world in which Grayson inhabits and will not stop at by any means to thrive in.
From the edgy bob, down to the stilletootes, she’s striking and she’s one not to mess with.
The title itself is a gag, because certainly Marla does not care a lot, or does she, depending at whom that care is directed — herself, her well-being, Fran, power, money — because if so, she most certainly does care a lot concerning any of the aforementioned.
Marla’s in the business of profiting off of dozens of elderly, for which she has a wall solely dedicated to their photos, as cash cows, in order to scheme them of their riches. It’s all going swimmingly until she meets — what she thought would be an easy acquisition — a “cherry” named Jennifer Peterson (Dianne Wiest).
Much to Marla’s dismay, she soon discovers Jennifer is not the prone elderly woman she assumed. She’s the mother of a well-connected Russian mobster Roman Lunyov played by Peter Dinklage.
In Blakeson’s mind, perhaps Roman Lunyov (Peter Dinklage) is the one we should be scared of the most, but pales in comparison to Rosamund’s remorseless villainy. Sure, he’s bad. But she’s badder. He’s not scary enough, and because he isn’t our fear of him wanes, making for a cheapened antagonist who can’t fair up against or truly serve as an equivalent to Grayson’s delectable wickedness. Stronger writing could have helped him there. Not at any fault of Dinklage, but a condemantion at Blakeson’s writing specfically with his character. The almost lackluster, lazy ways in which he and his goons attempt to murder Marla and Fran (Eiza González) is almost too obvious plot armor.
Despite this, I Care A Lot finds its strength within its unpredictability. Just as fast as the film veers into some comic off-beat realm, it reverses, and unexpectedly swerves into yet another lane, dragging it’s entertained audience along with it, with no end in sight. It’s a deliriously, delightful ride, one hopes will last longer, as Marla continues to up the ante that much further as she refuses to be deterred by Roman and his goons or any other opponent blocking her path — she’ll simply press her stiletto heel down on the gas that much harder in hopes of running any adversary over, smearing them flat on the pavement. “Do you know how many times I’ve been threatened by a man?” she questions. Marla simply can not be bothered.
Marla’s able to flourish within her environment due to the fact of how her immorality and dogged brutality serve as capitalitic fodder. It’s a system whereupon behavior such as hers — dehumanization, cruelty, manipulation — is lauded and even encouraged because it’s just what capitalism needs in order to continue to propagate.
Marla is practiced in her moral depravity, in order to capitalize on it that much further, to bend and morph it to her whims so that she may continue to wield the exploitative measures in which she is able to ensnare her unwilling wards. It’s a compelling watch, and one you won’t want to look away from, because it’s just that delicious and candidly depraved.
