Becky

Justin Milton’s thriller Becky begins with newly married Greg (Marvin Young) and Joy (Folusho Peters), a black couple who have arrived at their new home in a Texas suburb where they are launching their life together. In an oddly overly friendly neighborhood, Greg and Joy are greeted by a parade of neighbors who are a mix of young and old white and black couples, including Becky (Larissa Dali).

A white, sultry seductress, Becky charms Greg, who is working on becoming a police officer and must pass a fitness test. She runs with him and eventually tries to seduce him while pool hopping in the neighbor’s pool after drinking a beer and smoking a blunt. Greg rejects Becky, and the rest of the film is a classic thriller obsession about Becky’s lust for Greg.

In the process, Becky befriends Joy and tries to kill her. Breaking into Joy and Greg’s home multiple times, Becky does anything to see Greg and force his love for her, which ultimately becomes a murder spree in which Becky faces Joy, who beats her to death.

“…Becky does anything to see Greg and force his love for her…”

Becky is a slow buildup of action that ends quickly in a showdown of murder and beating. Called a Karen by Joy, one of a few racial undertones, which could be humorous, but the film’s lack of energy does not allow humor to evolve. In a very beige setting with little set décor, Becky leaves little to the imagination in its surroundings and characters except for maybe Becky’s body, which is usually scantily dressed.

The characters pull their weight to see the film through to the end, which, although a blood bath, is the most exciting part of the entire movie. It took almost an hour for the thrill to kick in, which was a little lackluster, but kudos to Joy for being a total badass and taking down Becky once and for all. Although details are given about Becky’s past and how she became a widow, which may have led to her current state of mind, it’s not credible craziness or feel believable for her actions.

Becky struggles to create the viewer-to-screen relationship because it is predictable and needs more of a story arc and depth. Becky’s sessions with her therapist appear useless, as does Greg’s efforts to become a cop. However, certain scenes with Becky’s neighbors show some provoking attitude—more of this would have been nice. There is little to no use of music build-up to create a sense of thrill, and there are some inconsistent scenes with characters and wardrobes. Overall, Becky is a story with a beginning, middle, and end, but it is not the power thriller it could be.