The film gave a future Oscar nominee and A-list star her first leading role.
On the same day it has added one of 2023’s best movies, Netflix has also made an extremely dark and twisty thriller available to stream.
That film is Lady Macbeth, which landed in cinemas in 2016 and saw future Oscar nominee Florence Pugh get her first leading role.
Set in rural England in 1865, Pugh plays Katherine, a woman trapped in a loveless marriage to a much older, wealthy man (Paul Hilton, Slow Horses).
Alone on her husband’s family estate, she begins a passionate affair with a local land worker her own age named Sebastian (Cosmo Jarvis, Calm with Horses).
However, this affair and the pair’s efforts to cover it up wind up leading to a string of murders.
Lady Macbeth trailer
Written by Alice Birch (Normal People), directed by William Oldroyd (last year’s also brilliant Eileen) and co-starring Naomi Ackie (Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody), Lady Macbeth was widely acclaimed by critics for its dark twisty story, its near-constantly tense atmosphere and Pugh’s multi-layered, powerful lead turn.
It was also a box office hit, grossing over £4 million pounds on a reported budget of just £500,000.
Boasting an 88% Rotten Tomatoes score, here’s some positive write-ups Lady Macbeth received:
Cosmo Jarvis in Lady Macbeth, now on Netflix
Arizona Republic: “Shot with unsparing coldness, Lady Macbeth is a disturbing character study and dark moral meditation. And like the blood on its namesake’s hands, it’s not easily washed out.”
Detroit News: “Pugh is a wrecking crew, communicating pure malevolence with a simple glance, but always keeping her composure. She may be evil, but she’s first and foremost a lady.”
Independent (UK): “William Oldroyd’s riveting debut feature Lady Macbeth plays like a cross between Wuthering Heights and The Postman Always Rings Twice.”
NPR: “Scene for increasingly horrifying scene, Lady Macbeth is about the making of a psychopath for whom bullying and betrayal have become learned behaviour.”
Rolling Stone: “Newcomer Florence Pugh, in a performance that will soon be legendary, dives deep into this terrifically twisted, erotic thriller and makes it matter.”
Washington Post: “Oldroyd never allows us to look away from the horror, focusing, in long, intense shots, on the faces of his characters as they suffer.”
Lady Macbeth is streaming on Netflix in Ireland and the UK right now. It is also available to watch in the US on Prime Video.
Related links:
- Netflix has just added one of 2023’s very best movies
- New images released for Joker sequel featuring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga
- Fans of Kin urged to watch gritty gangland drama labelled ‘best Irish show of all time’
