Viola Davis And J-Lo Go Full Bronson In 'Lila & Eve'
By Joel Wicklund in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 17, 2015 2:30PM
Viola Davis and Jennifer Lopez in "Lila & Eve." Photo: Bob Mahoney / Samuel Goldwyn Films
The bodies fall faster than they do in a Friday the 13th sequel in Lila & Eve, an amusingly over-the-top revenge drama that is the Lifetime network's answer to Death Wish. "Shoot first, ask questions never" is the mantra of this would-be thriller that takes a memorable turn from the merely dumb to the astonishingly silly late in the film.
Somehow or another this goofy slice of cinematic red meat got the full support of Viola Davis (twice a Tony winner and twice an Oscar nominee), who not only stars but also served as an executive producer, with her own production company backing the rickety star vehicle. Davis is a hell of an actress and brings full emotional commitment to her role here, but it's hard to imagine why she ever thought the script was worthy of her.
Davis plays Lila, a mother grieving over the recent death of her oldest son, killed as a bystander in a drive-by shooting. A support group fails to bring her solace and fellow member Eve (Jennifer Lopez) shares her feelings that its well-intentioned methods won't work for them. But tough-talking Eve (who wears a leather trapper hat for the streetwise Fargo look) knows what will work—revenge! Thus, the bloodletting begins. As with the Death Wish series, the portrayal of grief and a desire for justice is just an exploitative pretext for a whole lotta killin' going on.
Considering they barely know each other, it's amazing how quickly Lila adapts to Eve's "mow 'em down" methods. But the movie does have an explanation/excuse for that. It's a twist that comes right out of another, well known and much better movie I won't mention here to spoil the ludicrous revelation. But golly, it's a hoot in the context of this drivel.
If Davis' participation is a bit of a mystery, Lopez's involvement makes a lot more sense. Her acting career began promisingly, with charismatic roles in a couple of really good movies: Out of Sight (also featuring Davis in a small role) and the underrated Blood and Wine. But building the ever-expanding, music/fashion/celebrity business of simply being J-Lo quickly watered down her movie choices. Her critically-dismissed thriller from earlier this year, The Boy Next Door, was a hit, but mainly due to its very low budget, and its publicity gave the firm impression of a star clinging to sex symbol status instead of trying to move into more ambitious territory. She's pretty bad in Lila & Eve, though to be fair, no actor could really save lines like, "The cheese is in place. All we need is the rat."
Filling the boilerplate role of the ineffectual cop on the case is Shea Whigham, who was so good in HBO's Boardwalk Empire, playing the put-upon brother of Steve Buscemi's Nucky Thompson. His partner is Andre Royo, who played the memorably sympathetic junkie/informant Bubbles in the same network's landmark series The Wire. One wonders how both actors, having spent considerable time on projects where the veracity of criminal actions was key, must have felt watching the hokey depictions of thug life in Lila & Eve.
Director Charles Stone III (Drumline, Mr. 3000) does put a little shine on the shit, giving the movie a glossy veneer and crisp pacing that makes it watchable even as you shake your head at the daffy happenings onscreen.
Lila & Eve is the second release from Lifetime's new theatrical branch, Lifetime Films, which also gave us the mediocre Errol Flynn biopic, The Last of Robin Hood. But they smartly hedged their bets with Lila & Eve, sneaking it out to a meager amount of screens and leaning on a more cost-efficient video-on-demand platform.
Even VOD seems too lofty, as paying to watch this in any fashion would be a mistake. Clocking in at a lean 94 minutes, Lila & Eve will fit smoothly into a two-hour window with commercials on the famously soapy and schlocky TV network. That is where it belongs.
Lila & Eve. Directed by Charles Stone III. Written by Patrick Gilfillan. Starring Viola Davis, Jennifer Lopez and Shea Whigham. 94 mins. Rated R.
Opens today, July 17 at AMC's South Barrington 30 and also available via iTunes, VUDU and other video-on-demand services.