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6.1/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.1/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. I Hate Women remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
Look, if you like old, snappy black-and-white mysteries where everyone talks like they’re being paid by the word, you’ll have a blast. If you need your movies to be slow-burning and "deep," skip it. This is a movie for people who like to see a guy with a bad attitude get his comeuppance while solving a crime.
It’s not exactly The Mysterious Mystery! but it has that same frantic energy. The pacing is basically: run, talk, run, yell, solve crime.
Our lead reporter is exactly the kind of guy you’d avoid at a bar. He is deeply grumpy. Watching him go from "I hate everything" to actually trying to save someone is a bit of a stretch, but hey, it’s a movie.
The banter is fast. Sometimes it's too fast. I had to rewind a scene just because two characters were talking over each other so much I missed the plot point. Probably didn't need to know it anyway.
There’s a scene about halfway through where they’re in a police station and someone is just… standing in the background. They aren't doing anything. They don't even look like they’re supposed to be there. I think they might have just been the janitor who wandered onto the set and the director said, "Just stay there, don't move."
It reminded me a bit of the aimless energy in Wild Waves. Just chaos for the sake of it.
Is this high art? Absolutely not. Does it make you want to go buy a fedora and start a newspaper? Maybe a little bit. It's got that old-timey grit that you don't really see anymore. It doesn't overstay its welcome, which is the best thing you can say about a movie like this. 🕵️♂️
Just don't go in expecting it to be a groundbreaking drama. It’s just a story about a guy who finally realizes that maybe, just maybe, he doesn't hate everyone as much as he thought. Or he just likes the chase. Either way, it works.