Olivia Wilde’s new movie Don’t Worry Darling (DWD) definitely made me worry. Starring Florence Pugh who plays Alice, and Harry Styles who plays Jack Chambers, the psychological thriller is based in a small utopian town in the 1950’s.

   Alice and Jack live a happily married life in a community based on Victory. The idea of “Victory” was never clear to me, as Wilde didn’t explain if it was a place, a mindset, or a goal. Surrounded by the desert, the town prevents everyone from leaving for their “safety.” Each day the men travel to their top-secret jobs while the women stay and enjoy their relaxed lives. In Victory, nothing is questioned until Alice comes along. 

   Alongside Styles and Pugh, Chris Pine, Gemma Chan, Olivia Wilde, KiKi Layne, and Nick Kroll play supporting roles in DWD. Each actor played a key role in creating the world that Wilde was aiming for. The performance from each actor/actress was captivating. Pugh did an amazing job of bringing the audience into each of her experiences. Plus Styles surprised the audience that I was in the theater with, as this was his first lead role. Being a fan of Styles, it was unusual to see him encompassing the lead role in a movie. 

    The storyline had potential but was poorly executed. While watching, I started feeling motion sickness due to the rapid camera movements. During each scene, the camera jerked back and forth to show everything that was happening. Those movements only resulted in what looked like a shaking camera. 

   The cinematography was adequate, as each scene correctly showed what Wilde hoped for. After reading interviews with Wilde, I learned that it was her goal to bring confusion into the movie. That confusion brought on conversations about the movie, which better publicized it. 

   The soundtrack throughout the movie also made me worry. Wilde chose to use the same sounds over and over, and I felt as if it was getting louder throughout the movie. Each time it played, I was reminded of the scene in Ice Age when Sid found his army of sloths. He started to make noises and they all repeated them back in unison. What was supposed to be suspenseful, turned out to be a scene that brought laughter. 

   In general, the movie made zero sense. The end was extremely rushed, which left no time for explanations. Throughout the movie, something would happen that seemed to have importance, and would never be mentioned again. For example, at the beginning of the movie, a plane crashed, which caused Pugh’s character to start questioning her life. That plane starts the storyline, which leaves the audience with the impression that it’s important. After that one scene it’s never mentioned again. This happens throughout the entire movie. The only way fans have made sense of the movie is through theories suggested on social media. 

   I left the theater more confused than I have ever felt and wished that I could have gotten that two hours of my life back. I would not recommend this movie to others and rate it two stars out of five.