Magpie review – Daisy Riadley shines in tense, compelling portrait of a toxic relationship

Fantastic performances from the leads – you can practically hear the eggshells cracking as Ridley tiptoes around the vanities and insecurities of husband Shazad LatifThe post Star Wars trajectory is a mixed bag for actors. Maybe you get lucky, go the Harrison Ford route and become one of the shiniest movie stars of your generation. Maybe you’re more of a Mark Hamill type – initially out in the cold, before carving out a niche (in Hamill’s case as a sought after voice actor) and going on to cult success. Carrie Fisher, of course, was always a bit cooler than the entire endeavour, and continued her work as a writer, as well as dazzling in a variety of independent films. With Magpie, Daisy Ridley, who starred as Rey in the most recent round of George Lucas’ space opera, subtly signals that she would very much like to sit at Fisher’s table, please – by developing the story of this new independent thriller, working with writer Tom Bateman and director Sam Yates to make it a reality.Ridley plays Anette, a mum to two children, one a babe in arms, and the other, bright young Tilly (Hiba Ahmed), a child actor. The kids are lovely, but hubby Ben (Shazad Latif) is an absolute arsehole; touchy, negative, checked out, irritable, he’s the sort of guy who never once asks Anette how her day went, but gets the hump if she doesn’t pander to his every emotional need. And then when she does pander to him, he gets annoyed by her pandering. Ben is a novelist, but not a wildly successful one, and there’s clearly a part of him that blames her on some level for this as well. You can practically hear the eggshells cracking as Anette tiptoes around his various vanities and insecurities. Continue reading...