It is hard to fully understand why in the last few weeks, two major respected and well-known actresses, Amy Adams in “Nightbitch” and Nicole Kidman in “Babygirl” both with many credits and 30 years+ in the industry would make two movies that involved degrading and humiliating themselves. Both Kidman and Adams have millions of dollars, with Kidman having won one Oscar and 5 nominations and Adams having 6 nominations. Considering Adams and Kidman’s clout in Hollywood that includes the ability to take or reject any project they want, it is hard to understand why either of them would take projects like these.
The story of Babygirl is of an older woman in her late 50s, who is the CEO of a major manufacturing company and is only sexually satisfied by being humiliated. This humiliation includes being ordered around and even being told to drink milk from a plate like a house cat, reminding me of the scene where Amy Adams ate raw meat like a dog in a cafeteria in front of many onlookers. What is going on during some of the recent last movies to be released at the end of 2024? At a certain age, Adams is 50 and Kidman is 57, there has to come a time when an actor realizes, as they said many times during the four “Legal Weapon” movies, “I am too old for this sh**”.
I found most of Babygirl difficult to watch, at times even feeling sorry for Nicole Kidman taking this role. There is not much of a story here, other than some masochistic sexual encounters between Romy, played by Kidman, and a young man who is an intern at her company Samuel, played by Harris Dickinson. There is also conflict between Samuel and Romy’s husband Jacob played by Antonio Banderas, when he finds out about Romy’s affair, nothing new there.
The Rotten Tomatoes reviews for Babygirl are way too high at 78%, with my rating at 60%, which is the consensus review on IMDB and a recommendation to miss this film.
A Screenwriters Perspective: Current and Past Movies. 