Wicked Little Letters

A curious case of real-life poison pen letters is given an oddly cosy retelling in this well-polished if tonally uneven drama.

The town of Little Hampton on England’s south coast is the sort of place that launched a thousand middle-England mysteries, a sensation only enhanced by the 1920s setting. All of which makes it, at a glance, perfect a film that comes fitted with an all-star cast including Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley and Timothy Spall. But if there’s no doubting the calibre of the cast, the quality of the writing is more debateable.

Colman and Buckley previously starred as different incarnations of the same character in The Lost Daughter but this time around they couldn't be playing characters that are more different. Colman is the pious Edith Swan, who lives a brow-beaten life under the watchful eye of her overbearing father Edward (Spall) while her neighbour, single mum Rose Gooding (Buckley), is a foul-mouthed free spirit.

Although Edith and Rose start out as friends the relationship sours and things only worsen when vitriolic letters start to drop on Edith's mat. While everyone is only too happy to believe in her guilt, young woman police officer Gladys Moss (Anjana Vasan) isn't convinced and sets out to prove her innocence.

The contents of the letters are fruitier than an apple orchard and it’s here that the film starts to struggle with tone. The joke is, of course, that their baroque and expletive-laden contents are as at odds with the surroundings as it could possibly be but the fact that Johnny Sweet’s script leans so heavily into having his cast read them out loud might well be a turn-off to audiences that would normally be attracted by this sort of film.

Conversely the obviousness of the lack of mystery surrounding the real culprit, which is pretty much obvious from the off, means the film relies heavily on the performances to hold the interest. Fortunately, director Thea Sharrock has that particular element on her side and, even if the outcome is never in doubt, it’s fun to watch Buckley getting a chance to let her Irish accent have full rein in the face of Colman’s buttoned up but self-aggrandising spinster. Vasan is also excellent in support, with her expressions in the face of the sexism she faces from her male colleagues beautifully timed.

While making a point of societal sexism, Sweet oddly plays down the racism that was also rife in the 1920s, with Rose’s Black lover Bill (Malachi Kirby) barely raising an eyebrow even though the fact that she is Irish is a point of opprobrium. Even those willing to overlook its struggle to reconcile its more farcical elements with its heavier ideas about emotional abuse and women’s suffrage are likely to find wry smiles will trump belly laughs.