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The first film I watched in this year. 2022

Daphne is a young 30ish independent woman living in London, working in a restaurant. She’d like to move up to sous chef, her boss likes her, shares special foods with her, teases her, pushes some boundaries which Daphne seems to just barely maintain.

Daphne is edgy. She’d scare a lot of men. She drinks, she openly asks for sex which she does not appear to enjoy but becomes a participant in the “act” – tossing a condom about, asking for a wet wipe, tolerating the men she joins, she invites home, she finagles a way into their houses and yet we know as we watch this is not really what she wants.

Then one night, it’s late, she’s heading home, stops in a bodega and while she’s there a crazy man, a robber maybe, with a knife, not only threatens the cashier but stabs him. Daphne is standing by, watching the assault, calls 911 (or whatever they have in London), holds the mans hand as he bleeds and begs for a photo of his family.

Then life goes on. Back to work. Back to interacting with her mother, who we find out has cancer and is maybe getting some sort of treatment for it but Daphne basically shits on her mom. Daphne is just this side of mean, just this side of pushing everyone away. And of course, people are attracted to her despite her dysfunction, her alcohol abuse, her drug use, her fucking up at work. Because, just that’s what we all thing that sort of behavior elicits – interest, kindness, a mother who brings gifts, a boss who forgives.

We, all of us watching this, think the assault, the stabbing is a changing moment in her life, Daphne can’t just go on the same as always after having been eye-witness to this attack. But she does. She pushes everyone away, as usual. She is crude, irresponsible, as usual. She doesn’t answer the phone, listening to voice mail, be kind, be polite, as usual. She is the same old Daphne.

In the final moments she shows up at an event her mother has invited her to. A meditative, church-like occasion. Surprising her mother, pleasing her mother. She does what we don’t expect.

I’m only covering parts of this story, this film, plods along, predictable in its edginess. The view tries to figure out who this woman is. Daphne. Not sure we are ever allowed to really figure it out. OR. We know from beginning to end just who she is.