Written by: Morgan Lloyd Malcolm
Starring: Naomie Harris, Natalie Dormer, Lilly-Anne Marston-Smith, Beau Plested
Rating: [3/5]
Not everyone’s cut out to do the dirty work in getting exactly what they want done. In those moments it makes sense to outsource the work to someone with the expertise and ability to do so. This happens in all areas of life, but The Wasp focuses on the specific outsourcing of a wife hiring someone to kill her husband. Certainly not an everyday service but this feature reveals much more as it takes us through a journey and an unlikely connection between our two lead characters.
Not having spoken in many years, Heather (Naomie Harris) runs into former classmate Carla (Natalie Dormer), who works at a local supermarket. After some awkward catching up Heather seeks to have her abusive husband killed and wishes to pay Carla handsomely to get the job done.
Quite obviously derived from a play The Wasp presents an intriguing circumstance of bringing together previous let’s say acquaintances for quite the proposition. It plays on their different circumstances at the moment, with Heather very well off and Carla having to work not only as a cashier but also moonlight as a sex worker in order to put food on the table for her husband and kids. This puts quite the flip to their circumstances when in school where Carla had the upper hand in popularity and used it as a weapon to harm Heather. Them reuniting under these circumstances certainly raises an eyebrow but a meeting of convenience could help them both out where Heather can be rid of her husband and Carla receives a much-needed infusion of cash.
Interestingly enough this straight-forward plot had much more up its sleeve in reveals that deliver the thrills one would want from a story like this that should not be spoiled. After all these two are involved in a plot that will end in someone perishing by the end of it with so many variables involved. Seeing the simplicity of Heather’s request, Carla demands they have a specific plan to get this job done given dynamics that typically do not come into play when involving plots to murder people. We see this with the dynamic of it being a woman tasked to kill a man.
Usually in plots like this we have men as the killers or if it involves a woman, they are specifically skilled in the art of killing. Carla, while definitely a scrappy woman, needs to strategically plot out how she can kill a man who can easily overpower in addition to her being pregnant. It requires specific planning and more involvement of Heather than she would personally like but they have to work together here. During this planning process the pair share some camaraderie strangely enough, which then allows for a look back to the troubled past they had together to revive some long-held emotions that change things as the plot progresses.
With this being a two-hander we have quite the pair of performances by both Naomie Harris and Natalie Dormer. Harris truly makes a meal out of this role with a character who initially exhibits such a calming presence in the film but slowly unravels as the stress of the situation begins to ratchet up but her true intentions also get revealed right before us. She well and truly goes for it here and I’m so happy she gets the opportunity to shine with this role. The level she reaches was truly something to behold but she has a great scene partner in Natalie Dormer, who I have mostly equated to elegance with her portrayal of alluring characters in series like “Game of Thrones” and “The Tudors.” In this feature she plays a less-refined character, fairly against type, and still puts in some great work here.
Tight and quite the nasty little thing, The Wasp begins in a very directly straight-forward manner and then keeps you guessing in the direction it takes. It allows its characters to relive some past trauma and bring it to the present as these two women act in ways that benefit their current circumstance. At times allies and at other times just individuals on the opposite side of a transaction this feature has the typical constraints of plays turned into films but has a riveting story to keep us engaged throughout. A real treat that keeps you guessing.
Films with Josh 
