‘Honey Don’t!’ review: Overstuffed but undeniably charming

Ethan Coen’s Honey Don’t! struggles as often as it doesn’t, but a strong cast and dazzling neo-noir aesthetic have it coming out on top.

Honey Don’t! marks the second entry in Ethan Coen’s Lesbian B-Movie Trilogy after Drive-Away Dolls. A few fixtures behind the camera have returned, including Coen’s cowriter/editor/wife Tricia Cooke, cinematographer Ari Wagner, costume designer Peggy Schnitzer, and composer Carter Burwell. But the only returning cast member is Margaret Qualley, who now stars as Bakersfield, a California private investigator, Honey O’Donahue.

Despite the best efforts of sister Heidi (Kristen Connolly) and assistant Spider (Gabby Beans), O’Donahue is hard-drinking and emotionally stunted to the point of cliche. A tip from police detective Marty Metakawich (Charlie Day) leads her to the murder scene of one of her clients, and the resulting investigation quickly has her crossing paths with pastor Drew Devlin (Chris Evans).

Devlin’s Four-Way Temple is both a front for a drug smuggling operation and an opportunity for Devlin to prey on insecure women. It drops O’Donahue into a conspiracy that strains her developing romance with police officer MG Falcone (Aubrey Plaza) and threatens the safety of her niece Corinne (Talia Ryder).

Bakersfield was built for noir.

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Qualley gives an outstanding performance as the fast-talking PI, and even people who aren’t won over by the film should have no problem finding joy in her part in it. Her O’Donahue manages to simultaneously be effortlessly confident and entirely out of her depth, which gives each scene the added intrigue of getting to figure out which side of the coin she’ll land on. Plaza gives a layered performance that pays off more and more as the film goes on, and Evans is obviously enjoying every bit of scenery-chewing depravity he gets to be a part of. Day, Beans, and Lera Abova all shine despite their limited screentime.

But the biggest success here is the visuals. Wagner’s cinematography is absolutely stunning and one of the most impressive takes on noir we’ve had in a bit. Through her lens, the industrial landscape of modern Bakersfield is as grim and gritty as any 1930s New York City or Chicago could ever hope to be. When combined with Schnitzer’s costuming, the result manages a combination of modern and worn that would have this story fitting as comfortably as a period piece, as it does taking place in 2025. For the story that Coen is trying to tell and the ensemble that he’s doing it with, this aesthetic couldn’t have been handled any better.

The Bottom Line.

There are some pretty glaring script issues here, and it’s surprising that another draft or two of the script wasn’t done to iron out the pacing and trim the fat from some of the subplots. But Honey Don’t is a B movie at heart, so those feel like relatively minor complaints when considering Honey Don’t! absolutely nails the tone it’s going for. Qualley, Plaza, and Evans are clearly having a blast in their roles, and Wegener’s cinematography is absolutely dazzling. Give it a shot.

Honey Don’t! is now playing in theaters everywhere. Watch the trailer here.

Images courtesy of Focus Features.

Brogan Luke Bouwhuis

Brogan is a Salt Lake City-based writer and film festival programmer who has watched more Scooby-Doo than the majority of the human population. You can find him on social media at @roboteatsdino or at roboteatsdinosaur.com