Agoraphobia is a type of anxiety disorder that causes people to avoid places and situations that may induce panic. In the case of child psychologist Dr. Anna Fox (Amy Adams) in Joe Wright’s The Woman in the Window, she is trapped within her home, consumed by the fear of going outside. It is eerily coincidental that the delays in production and release of the Netflix film correlate with a time when so many have felt trapped within their dwellings during the COVID 19 pandemic. In many ways, Hollywood has been preparing for such bewildering times for decades. While Wright’s stylized execution is impressive, The Woman in the Window is a yarn that never fully grabs its audience by the jugular. Fortunately, its impressive ensemble cast, most notably the skillful acting of Adams, offers much redemption of its plot deficits. 

Set in the Morningside Heights neighborhood of Manhattan The Woman in the Window wastes no time drawing viewers into the anxiety-driven, self-entrapment of Anna Fox. After going through a “separation” with her husband and child, Anna is consumed with paranoia. Anna’s psychiatrist, Dr. Landy (Tracy Letts, also scriptwriter), applauds her recent snooping of a local prayer group and new neighbors across the street, the Russells. Landy celebrates this percolation of Anna’s curiosity as inversely proportional to a decrease in her depression. Without verbal confirmation by Anna, her sighing eyes, swaying head and half-smile indicate that she is ripe for a change in her condition. Then, right on cue, as if a sign from God, Ethan Russell (Fred Hechinger), the teenage son of the new neighbors, arrives on her doorstep, asking for an invite and friendship. This encounter activates Anna’s professional discernment of Ethan, and she quickly perceives that trouble brews within him and his family. Yet, it is Ethan’s mother, Jane Russell (Julianne Moore), whom Anna meets shortly thereafter, who serves as the extroverted yin to Anna’s introverted yang. Like a scene from HBO’s Sex and the City, the two winos quickly hit it off, following Jane’s rescue of Anna from a Halloween-induced panic attack. In spite of the brief revelry, Anna perceives the troubled state of Jane, and everything points to angry, animated Alistair Russell (Gary Oldman) being a source of great strife within his family. Anna’s instincts seem credible when she witnesses through her window a crime which occurs within the Russell household. A multitude of twists and turns in the story then ensue. 

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With Adams and Oldman, there is no surprise that they execute their acting well. Adams rehearsed many times for this character type in previous films, particularly with Nocturnal Animals (2016). Oldman’s portrayal of Alistair is a less impactful version of his performance in Léon: The Professional (1994). The limited variation in Alistair’s character is a missed opportunity to fully benefit from Oldman’s skill. The involvement of Anna’s basement renter, David Winters, is the weakest link in the convoluted plot, as is the performance by the actor, Wyatt Russell.

What does not disappoint is the artistry of the great French cinematographer Bruno Delbonnel. At the beginning of The Woman in the Window, there is a POV shot of Anna looking outside at the concrete jungle that she inhabits, while the camera jerks slightly in POV mode and then tilts upward as Adams’ character focuses on the opposing tenants. This precise command and storyboard precision, which is a testament to Wright’s directing, effectively communicates Anna’s insecurities and deep-seeded longing to be with others. Each shot of Anna wandering around her home like a specter employs a steady variation of medium to extreme close-ups and plenty of weird Dutch angles. A crowning achievement is Delbonnel’s ability to capture Anna’s staircase in such a way that it resembles the Penrose stairs of M.C. Escher. The big money shots result from dolly zoom effects akin to Jaws’ “Get Out of the Water” sequence.

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In The Woman in the Window, the special effects team brings macabre black magic to the screen. As Anna wakes up in the middle of the night, bug-eyed twitching insomnia and nightmares loom. Lauren Bacall’s famous face from Dark Passage (1947) screeches across the green-purple television, pops out of the screen and delivers an ominous message of comfort to Anna. In key moments, Wright and his team throw in a reasonable amount of grindhouse splatter blood that Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino would approve of. Glass shatters repeatedly in The Woman in the Window, almost as a crutch to force excitement in lieu of a flawed script.

As for the lighting of this Alice in Wonderland (1951) gone wrong, hues of red and pink encompass Jane’s most intimate rooms, alternating with shades of depressing blue. The enclosing walls, floor and ceiling express Anna’s dread to come out and face the world. In addition, low-level lighting, complete with a steady dose of window blinds, appears throughout her brownstone. This gives an aura of mystery, complementing the somber music. It is the sort of profound mystery that one would associate with David Lynch’s Blue Velvet (1986).

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Most problematic for The Woman in the Window is pacing, which is especially zany towards the end. The necessity of reshoots may be among the root problems. Audio techniques, presumably the use of ADR, prove to be a spoiler for the skilled listener. The culmination of the film is underdeveloped and a rather stale moment for the acting of Adams and Brian Tyree Henry as Detective Little.

The Woman in the Window is by no means an Oscar contender. The special effects, good as they are, become repetitive. While one may revel in Wright’s homage to the old movies of tinseltown and pulp fiction of yesteryear, the film does not earn a spot in the surrealism hall of fame with Vertigo (1958) or Repulsion (1965). Nevertheless, there is something venerable in the act of creating a pulpy escapist thriller. This is particularly the case in The Woman in the Window where the dialogue is often snappy and the visuals entice viewers to await what lies ahead.

Peter Bell (@PeterGBell25) is a 2016 Master of Arts – Film Studies graduate of Columbia University School of Arts in New York City. His interests include film history, film theory and film criticism. Ever since watching <span id=”:1ac.1″>TCM as a child, Peter has had a passion for film, always trying to add greater context to film for others. His favorite films include Chinatown, Blade Runner, Lawrence of Arabia, A Shot in the Dark and Inception. Peter believes movie theaters are still the optimal forum for film viewing, discussion and discovering fresh perspectives on culture.