Honey Don't! review

HONEY DON’T!: 

A COMPETENT BUT MISGUIDED SECOND SOLO PROJECT FROM ETHAN COEN! 

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** out of 4

FOCUS FEATURES

Margaret Qualley in Honey Don’t!

 

            A small-town private investigator delves into a series of deaths tied to a mysterious church in Honey Don’t!, the second solo film from director Ethan Coen (No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading, True Grit (2010)) after 2024’s Drive-Away Dolls which reunites him with his lead star from that movie, Margaret Qualley (Sanctuary, Poor Things, The Substance). I was looking forward to this movie, I love the Coen Brothers and their work (Though like Drive-Away Dolls, this one only involves Ethan and not Joel) and even when a film of theirs doesn’t quite stick the landing like The Ladykillers, it’s usually a fascinating yet still well-made misfire. 

            Despite the film not exactly living up to their collaborative works, I enjoyed Drive-Away Dolls a lot last year and found it to be an entertaining buddy dark-comedy that really showcased Qualley’s skills as a leading actress. So, I was immediately onboard for Coen and Qualley’s next project together which…sadly…is not as good as Drive-Away Dolls. 

            I don’t think Honey Don’t! is a terrible movie as there are some fun things in it particularly the performances by the cast and a few laughs, but the plot structure and pacing severely brings this movie down. It left me feeling empty by the end rather than a legit emotion and honestly just made me wish I was watching a movie from both Joel and Ethan Coen together instead. 

The film is set in Bakersville, California and follows private investigator Honey O’Donahue (Qualley) being called to a crime scene by homicide detective Marty Metakawich (Charlie Day-It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Horrible Bosses 1 and 2, Pacific Rim 1 and 2) who refuses to accept her as a lesbian. It turns out this is only one in a series of murders that are connected to a church led by Reverend Drew Devlin (Chris Evans-Marvel Cinematic Universe, Snowpiercer, Materialists) and fears her rebellious niece Corinne (Talia Ryder-Never Rarely Sometimes Always, West Side Story (2021), Dumb Money) will be the next target so the investigation and race is on. 

The film also stars Aubrey Plaza (Safety Not Guaranteed, Ingrid Goes West, My Old Ass) as Officer MG Falcone, Kristen Connolly (The Happening, The Cabin in the Woods, House of Cards) as Honey’s sister Heidi O’Donahue, Billy Eichner (Billy on the Street, The Lion King (2019), Bros) as Mr. Siegfried, Gabby Beans (The Harbinger, Presumed Innocent) as Spider, Don Swayze (On Swift Horses) as Gary, Lena Hall (The Big Gay Musical, Snowpiercer, Your Friends and Neighbors) as Elle, Lera Abova (Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin, Exterritorial, One Piece (2023)) as Chère, Christian Antidormi (As the Bell Rings, Home and Away, Spartacus: War of the Damned) as Colligan, and Kinna McInroe (Office Space, National Lampoon’s Dorm Daze 2, Deidra & Laney Rob a Train) as Mrs. Novotny. 

            Overall, Honey Don’t! aside from a few entertaining aspects and potentially interesting ideas is a colossal mess and a huge step down from Ethan’s Coen’s last directing effort. It just seemed like Coen was trying to do what he did with Drive-Away Dolls, but he didn’t have the passion or dry wit that made it funny and compelling. 

            I don’t know if it was because I’m too dumb or I just didn’t follow it closely enough or those fuckwads sitting across from me talking throughout the movie distracted me, but I was constantly questioning what is at stake here, what is this movie about, and why should I care? Instead of focusing on the mystery surrounding the church which sounded interesting at first, it decides to focus more on the yuks and various plot detours with the characters in random situations. 

It's as if the mystery was an afterthought despite it being the integral component to the story, the narrative gets lost frequently in this film, plain and simple. Reminded me a lot of Eddington earlier this year which had a lot to say yet through clumsy execution I was questioning what the take-away from the movie was, the same applies to this. 

Margaret Qualley is great here and gets a lot of laughs with her cold, snarky sense of humor though granted, it’s essentially a repeat of the type of character she played in Drive-Away Dolls, but it works. Chris Evans is a lot of fun as this egotistical, sex-addicted pastor and much like his Knives Out performance and when he reprised his role as Johnny Storm in Deadpool & Wolverine, it’s a genuinely funny throwback to Pre-Captain America Chris Evans (And by that I mean him playing a jerk and doing it so well). 

Charlie Day sometimes has a few funny lines though it mostly consists of his characters trying to hit on Qualley’s character. Aubrey Plaza however despite giving some good laughs in her moments of screen-time and generally being a very funny actress I thought was underutilized here with most of her best bits saved for the third act. 

The movie looks nice from a production design and cinematography level, but there’s not a whole lot I can say about it. If you liked how Drive-Away Dolls looked, you’ll probably like this movie’s production design too. 

Ethan Coen’s a talented filmmaker especially when paired up with his brother Joel, unfortunately Honey Don’t!is an empty and misguided follow-up to Drive-Away Dolls with an unfocused narrative, awkward humor, and characters that don’t leave a lasting impression. I hear there’s a third movie in Coen’s lesbian B-movie trilogy currently in development, but if it turns out to be just like this I’ll just tell him and the crew “Honey Don’t!”.