(Odette Parfitt) I feel like a lot of the movies on Netflix tend towards the romcom side of things, so in the spirit of variety…

The Laundromat (2019)

Basic plot: Tannie Ellen needs to make an insurance claim after a terrible accident and realises she is dealing with a bunch of crooks, and proceeds to go all the way down the rabbit hole to make them pay for it. (That is about as much as I can safely say without spoilers.)

How it was (probably) pitched to the producers: Let’s teach people what “tax avoidance” is – but we’ll get super famous people to make it more interesting.

Thoughts:

• As I sort-of mentioned above, the movie is basically a long YouTube video explaining tax avoidance, fraud and money laundering – but weirdly in a fun way?
• Gary Oldman and Antonio Banderas going grocery shopping in fabulous tuxedos is instantly iconic
• Tannie Meryl probably shouldn’t tell her granddaughters about her sex life when she was young, but that might just be my NG upbringing talking.

Bottom line: The style of The Laundromat is oddly appealing; it goes from YouTube tutorial to smaller clips (which are basically case studies) to an ending that feels like a stage play. It’s hard to classify the genre, but I appreciated the storytelling and humour around something that is actually quite serious. All in all, I recommend it – but not for a Friday night when your brain is fried and you don’t have the energy to concentrate.

Will the man in your life like it?

My plus-one gave it his rare stamp of approval.

Watch The Laundromat if you like:

• Movies like Erin Brockovich
• Tannie Meryl
• Gary Oldman’s German accent (which really just makes everything sound hilarious)