'Eileen' review: Anne Hathaway, Thomasin McKenzie lead addictive, surprising movie

Director William Oldroyd leans into the uncomfortable in the movie Eileen, starring Thomasin McKenzie and Anne Hathaway, an adaptation of Ottessa Moshfegh's novel.

Eileen is reminiscent in style to a Hitchcock-esque thriller, with alluring scenes of unexpected twists to keep you on the edge of your seat.

What is 'Eileen' about?

Based on the book by Ottessa Moshfegh, who wrote the screenplay with her husband Luke Goebel, Eileen is a story set in a 1960s Massachusetts town.

We first meet Eileen Dunlop (McKenzie), a secretary at a local boys prison. She seems relatively shy, often feeling quite lonely as a young woman who splits her time between work and managing her drunk, ex-cop father Jim (Shea Whigham).

Eileen is very much living through her fantasies, largely involving sex and violence. This includes thoughts about being ravished by a young prison guard, and at other times thinking about killing her father.

Then she meets the striking Rebecca St. John (Hathaway), a new psychologist at the institution. Eileen is captivated by Rebecca's beauty and her charisma, with the psychologist donning a red suit paired with red lipstick that pops against her blonde hair.

Rebecca also has a particular interest in one of the boys in the prison, Lee Polk (Sam Nivola), a boy convicted of stabbing his father to death.

The two women develop a relationship outside of work, which takes us into unsettling and bizarre, but incredibly captivating places.

Is 'Eileen' worth watching?

There is one thing that we have absolutely learned from watching Eileen, Hathaway has the best scream in Hollywood.

She's impeccable at it and it's so impactful that it will shake you to your core.

Screaming aside, Hathaway's portrayal of Rebecca is a performance that will stay with you. She has the perfect poise that commands the screen.

While Hathaway's performance will absorb you, McKenzie's Eileen is wonderfully complex as well. The New Zealand actor's impressive skills really showcase the character's journey, from the more innocent, but oftentimes odd moments, to more darker places. It's incredibly satisfying to watch.

The goal of a thriller is to keep you guessing and Eileen accomplishes that goal. There are some moments, particularly near the end, that we're happy to admit we didn't see playing out the way we see on screen. It's a psychological thriller that really leans into the darkness of the story in such an attractive way.

There's also something particularly alluring about the relationship between Eileen and Rebecca. For much of the film you're left to decipher what their intentions are. Rebecca seems to see something in Eileen that others don't, and you follow them through moments that seem quite flirty, and others when it's clear Eileen wants to be Rebecca. At other times, you're left to question the level of manipulation in this relationship.

While we're moving head first into a movie season where everything seems to be about the holidays, Eileen is that addictively weird film you may need.

Eileen is now in theatres across Canada