Like Alice Creed<\/em>, which carried flavors of early Neil Marshall as well as Danny Boyle\u2019s Shallow Grave<\/em>, I Care a Lot<\/em> also feels indebted to Blakeson\u2019s fellow UK genre filmmakers. His new movie bears a strong resemblance to Matthew Vaughn\u2019s 2004 gangster film Layer Cake<\/em>, with Pike\u2019s con artist Marla Grayson standing in for Daniel Craig\u2019s suave, unnamed coke dealer. I Care a Lot<\/em> is similarly stylish and darkly funny, with a welcome bitter edge that doesn\u2019t overwhelm the final product, but gives it a refreshing bite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pike\u2019s Marla is a court-appointed guardian, specializing in the care of elderly people. This should mean she takes legal control when a senior citizen who can no longer care for themselves is either neglected by their existing family, or has no family and needs emergency intervention. For Marla, the reality involves partnering with doctors and care homes to force older people into assisted living so she can sell off their assets, keeping the profits for herself. In the courtroom, Marla is all smiles and selflessness. Outside of it, she\u2019s a shark.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When a doctor turns Marla and her business partner\/girlfriend Fran (Eiza Gonz\u00e1lez) onto 60-something retiree Jennifer Peterson (Dianne Wiest), it looks like they\u2019ve hit the jackpot. Jennifer\u2019s gorgeous house is filled with valuable art and antiques, and her safety deposit box has some nice surprises of its own. However, Jennifer isn\u2019t the childless old lady Marla thinks she is. After Marla sticks her in a facility, Jennifer\u2019s crime boss son Roman (Peter Dinklage) comes looking for her. He instigates a game of one-upmanship with Marla that threatens her business, life and relationship with Fran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The dramatic beats of I Care a Lot<\/em> aren\u2019t terribly surprising, but the writing is strong enough to keep things interesting. Blakeson peppers his script with lines and character specifics that elevate the material well above meat-and-potatoes level (for example, Roman threatens Marla by detailing how he cut off a previous rival\u2019s fingers with a butter knife, and that \u201cshe\u2019s buried under a Jimmy John\u2019s now.\u201d)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pike\u2019s confident performance brings to mind a more fiery version of her turn as Gone Girl\u2019s<\/em> Amy Dunne. Like Amy, Marla speaks in cynical inner monologues, and has a bifurcated persona that changes depending on what she needs (or wants) from whoever she\u2019s speaking to at that moment. She\u2019s exceedingly smart and competitive, and can be coolly detached or gleefully impassioned. Pike plays that range like a first-chair violinist, showing masterful control at every moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I Care a Lot<\/em> may not be a tour-de-force, but there\u2019s something to be said for sturdy filmmaking that knows what it is. Blakeson\u2019s limited output so far has been consistently solid, and typically draws out strong performances from the actors involved. His latest is sharp and fun, and delivers exactly what you\u2019d want it to, even if its overall arc sometimes feels predictable. “I Care A Lot” streams Friday on Netflix<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/02\/i-care2-1024x576.jpg\")
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