A Vigilante | SXSW 2018 Film Review

As A Vigilante began, I was immediately reminded of one of my favorite long-forgotten television shows, Vengeance Unlimited. In it, Michael Madsen’s Mr. Chapel would take up clients who had been wronged, only to right these victims with a heaping dose of manipulation and intimidation. As we are introduced to Olivia Wilde’s Sadie, a similar setup unfolded.

Seemingly, Sadie is in the midst of a business meeting of sorts, negotiating with an overconfident, middle-aged white guy whose entire demeanor wreaks of snide arrogance. When it becomes apparent that Sadie intends to force him to turn over all of his earnings to his abused wife, he attempts to showcase his masculinity, which is immediately met with a swift punch to the throat. Needless to say, the next scene involves putting pen to paper, and we now have our modern-era Ms. Chapel.

Sadie is the vigilante of the title, a woman who fled her life of abuse at the hands of her maniacal husband and now chooses to fight for those too weak, ashamed, or terrified to do it for themselves. Her plight is simple: identify a person in need by random calls to a prearranged voice mail, seek out the abuser, then plan and execute the strongest course of action to free the victim of their life of hell. All the while, Sadie is slowly working her way through thousands of miles of forest land in pursuit of the one that got away…her husband.

The sharpest aspect of writer-director Sarah Daggar-Nickson’s script is how it effortlessly avoids the trappings of a typical genre flick. Sadie’s character doesn’t get off easy, her targets and their victims weigh heavily upon her conscience, as does her own history of abuse and tragedy. We frequently visit Sadie’s support group, where true-life survivors of domestic violence recount their horrific tales of personal humiliation, and these moments shine a beacon of light on many of society’s misconceptions for why women and men would remain in these situations. These candid retellings are often more difficult to listen to than watching Sadie’s sadistically intensified brand of retribution.

The only real issue with the script are the often jarring narrative segues, leaving a scene abruptly or leaving too much information in the air, and a rather haphazardly handled final act. While the plot and overall arc of Sadie is fascinating to watch unfold, these moments of sporadic randomness tend to rip us away from the story at hand, rather than push us further into understanding.

What gels everything together is the fierce, tortured performance of Olivia Wilde as Sadie. Wilde has performed admirably in roles before, but never has she approached this level of emotional gravitas. Bouncing between ominous rage and maternal sympathy at the drop of a hat, Wilde balances her fractured psyche with a skill yet to be witnessed from the actress. Walking out of the screening, it is tough to imagine this film not catapulting Wilde into heartier fare in the years to come.

Though similar in feel to one of my favorites of last year’s SXSW festival, M.F.A., A Vigilante does tend to meander a bit as it searches for its footing, and never quite achieves the level of conversation piece perfectly meshed with populist entertainment as that film. That said, this is still a film and topic treated with the utmost respect, carried forth by the strength of a bold, haunting performance from Olivia Wilde. It leaves the audience wishing the victims of the world secretly had a vigilante like Sadie on speed dial.