Related Titles: Baby Driver, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, In Bruges
This is one of those films that had a, relatively, heavy marketing campaign on TV and in the cinema and was pushed as a big film in welcoming people back to the cinema post-lockdown. It is one of those films that is ridiculous when you really think about it but it is a perfect example of an escapism film which is kind of what the cinema is all about for most visitors.
The plot, while it is has it's quirky originalities, is not particularly fresh as a whole but feels quite familiar in it's progression. A trio of mismatched young adults head out on a mission to find a new life after accidentally all being brought together. Sound familiar huh? (See Harry Potter, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Craft, Ghostbusters & many more for other famous trios that are slightly in over their heads!)
As I said above, there are plenty of traits that are very familiar from this tongue-in-cheek gangster film. The giant bag of drugs, the hitmen (left, right and centre), the wild drug dealers and religious figures with guns stashed in every possible place. What carries this film is the cast. The titular character Pixie is portrayed perfectly by Olivia Cooke who is an excellent actress (check out Thoroughbreds and Ready Player One.) Cooke's sharp wit and humour constantly keeps the audience on their toes. Although, I must admit, she is, on more than one occasion, done dirty by the script; there are a number of moments where the script takes on the role of a literal teenage boy and uses her sexuality and looks as a punchline. I haven't got a problem with this but it honestly just feels so outdated and kinda makes her the epitome and even namesake of the manic pixie dream girl trope. This goes for the leading males to, on plenty of occasions, Ben Hardy (Frank) and Daryl McCormack (Harland) are left standing gawping at Pixie in cringe, horny boy fashion. That being said, the script has plenty of quick-witted jokes that are delivered well; there was an especially risky joke on the topic of the Catholic Church and boys - and although it's a very controversial topic - the throwaway nature of the joke makes it work quite well. Not only are the leading trio great but there are a number of good cameos to catch, including Dylan Moran (Black Books) whose dry, deadpan humour brings his extreme drug dealing character to life on the screen. I also enjoyed Alex Baldwin's, albeit slightly exaggerating in the trailer, performance as the lead of the gangers priests and his Irish accent isn't all bad! (😐)
Pixie really teeters on the verge of ridiculous. Especially in the final scenes where the main trio and various accompanying companions and family members picked up along the way are seen having a slow-mo gun fight in a church. The latter half of this film really veers towards the ridiculous side of cinema but just about holds onto the balance thanks to, in my opinion, the road trip that they embark on in the first half of the film. I loved the road tripping and ensuing shenanigans much more than the gangster priests half of the film.
Basically, this film is immature, done before but the perfect example of escapism film. It doesn't require much thinking and is the perfect film to while the hours away to.
Rating: 7/10
By Rebecca
Pixie is one of those films where you watch it for the first time, really enjoy it but then probably wouldn’t ever revisit it. It was a far fetched yet entertaining film with some brilliant performances from the rising star cast. The genre of Pixie is tipped as comedy thriller which is very peculiar but it does work quite well. I think it helps that there’s a bit of Irish charm running through which coexists with the dark humour of it all.
We are thrown into this story, and introduced with two men going into a church looking for drugs. They are met with four priests and suddenly there is a shootout. The two men get the drugs and then we first hear Pixie’s name. The two men have been seeing her at the same time, and one of them was then going to be on their way to elope to San Francisco together. A series of happens go on and suddenly two young guys Frank and Harland find themselves with the bag of drugs and have to find a solution to get rid of them. In comes Pixie to help calm the situation and help the boys flog the gear with some of her fathers contacts. The story goes on and the film progresses and at the end we get Alec Baldwin as a corrupt priest in a mega shoot out. There is a lot of gun violence hand in hand with comedic moments.
One thing that holds this movie up is the performance from Olivia Cooke. She really is an underrated talent. She brings the character of Pixie to life with the delivery of the script and her mysterious but also kind of cheeky nature. She has the two boys Frank and Harland wrapped around her little finger and they would do absolutely anything for her. The boys get into some situations which they would never usually find themselves in and this is all because they are completely engrossed in Pixie.
For sure this film has it flaws, and it’s not going to win any high brow awards. However it does pack a few laughs and it is a pretty easy watch despite some violence.
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