Film Review – THE WASP: Naomie Harris Sizzles with One of Her Fiercest Performances in a Tense Thriller [Tribeca 2024]

The Wasp Review

The Wasp (2024) Film Review from the 23rd Annual Tribeca Film Festival, a movie directed by Guillem Morales, written by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm and starring Naomie Harris, Natalie Dormer, Dominic Allburn, Jack Morris, Rupert Holliday-Evans, Jake Donald-Crookes, Naomi Richards, Evelyn Temple, Alice Grace, Eire Farrell, Harrison Metcalf and Evelyn Morris.

Naomie Harris bites into a dramatically chewy new role in director Guillem Morales’s smart and suspenseful thriller, The Wasp. It is essentially a three-character piece with an emphasis on its two central female characters. The Wasp begins with solemn intensity and closes with some of the sharpest dialogue so far this year as the two main women in the film, Heather (Harris) and Carla (Natalie Dormer), face off with terrifying results that will leave one wondering which way the character of Heather will turn next. The film opens and closes with images of a wasp, an insect that can sting if provoked. Heather may be similar to a wasp in her own way and as the plot develops like a roller coaster ride, strap in. You’re in for a through-provoking and bumpy ride.

Dominic Allburn (in a solid performance) plays Heather’s husband, Simon, a guy who really doesn’t seem right for her. Heather doesn’t think so anyway. He doesn’t pay attention to what she wants and appears to be a bit self-centered. Without getting into too many of the early plot developments, Heather and Carla knew each other a while back when they were kids. With old friends like Carla, who needs enemies? But, wait, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Carla had a vicious streak within her that manifested itself when Carla took drastic action with an injured pigeon as a kid. Could Carla, now a mother of three (who is pregnant with a new child) and Heather have enough in common to re-establish their rocky friendship? Could learning from their past help this pair of women forge a genuine bond? Probably not considering the fact that Heather has other things in mind but given the quality of the direction here, you won’t be able to see which way this film’s script will turn next.

Both Carla and Heather come from different lifestyles. It could seem Heather is more stable because of her flashy appearance but she’s in a rut. Big time. Carla has a lot of her own personal turmoil within herself as well but she doesn’t dwell on the past too much. When Heather brings volatile elements of the past up, we learn the truth about what happened which has tormented Heather and leads her to take violent actions against Carla in which there will be no turning back for either character in the film.

Harris is spectacular. The movie takes us back to when Heather was a young girl. She was bullied and a group of kids did something which forever transformed her life. Harris’s performance captures the trauma Heather endured later on to perfection. That dismay which occurred could lead some audiences to suggest Heather seek help and just try to get over it. It’s not that easy for Heather, though, and as anyone who has ever experienced a painful childhood will know, things like what happened to Heather are almost impossible to forget.

But, does Heather take things too far in her actions throughout the film, The Wasp? The audience will make up its own mind by the conclusion who, if anyone, is in the right here. Is it Heather (who clings on to a tormented past) or Carla who believes in letting bygones be bygones (because, let’s face it, they were just kids back then)? But, then there’s also the pesky matter of the present where Heather’s marriage feels icy cold. What, exactly, has made that situation occur other than the complexities of Heather’s past? This film is like a well-oiled machine and sets up all its elements like a game of chess where each character makes their move and must face the consequences of their respective choice.

The Wasp is an incredibly acted movie but it has its flaws. There are too many plot twists thrown in willy-nilly at the end and the viewer may get whiplash from all the back and forth between the two characters towards the conclusion. Also, it’s hard to know who to root for at times. But, through Harris’s fearless performance, the movie makes a strong case for siding with Heather. It is ultimately up to the particular viewer which side is more rational to take.

In the end, The Wasp is one ride that is intensely fascinating to watch. As an acting exercise for Naomie Harris, the film crackles with tension as it asks the viewer to forgive her character’s actions because of the horrifying excesses of her past. Natalie Dormer more than holds her own beside Harris in a role that has many layers to it as well. The Wasp may leave one wondering whether or not old grudges should be forgotten but also sheds lights on the difficulties of suffering trauma as a child and its effects on that child as they grow older. It’s surely a thought-provoking film.

Rating: 7.5/10

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