Harry Styles is probably one of the most famous and iconic celebrities of the 2010s to 2020s. From gaining celebrity stardom as a member of the best boyband, One Direction, (if you don’t know who they are by now, you are seriously missing out), to starring in his first action film, Dunkirk, Harry has been non-stop releasing content for his devoted fans. He released 3 studio albums: Harry Styles (2017), Fine Line (2019), and his most recent release, Harry’s House (2022), along with a plethora of music videos to go along with his hits (check out his most recent music video “Music for A Sushi Restaurant” for clear skin to see him as part octopus). He also had a cameo in the Marvel movie, Eternals, back in 2021 in the first end credit scene, and is said to be starring in the next series of Marvel movies as Thanos’ brother, Eros.
Styles has starred in two feature films: Don’t Worry Darling and My Policeman, released this September and October, respectively. Both movies have created a lot of drama in the film industry for his close relations with Olivia Wilde, acting alongside Florence Pugh in Don’t Worry Darling, and starring as a closeted gay character during the 1950s in My Policeman. These movies came out just under a month apart from each other, but each movie is vastly different in style, plot, genre, and acting. I went and saw both movies he starred in (I am a self-proclaimed “#1 Harrie”) and honestly loved both movies. They were so different that I didn’t feel like I was watching the same story unfold twice.
Spoilers Ahead
Don’t Worry Darling, a psychological thriller directed by love-interest Olivia Wilde, takes place in a dream-like suburbia where everything is a cookie-cutter 1950s lifestyle; the wives stay home, clean, cook for their husbands, and care for the children. In contrast, the husbands go to work in some place called Victory Headquarters, which is off-limits to everyone but the men, and it’s located in a desert surrounding the same town of Victory. Styles’ character, Jack Chambers, is married to Pugh, Alice Chambers.
They have this seemingly perfect life together until Alice gets flashbacks to her past life and discovers the sinister secrets of Victory and all the men who work at the Headquarters. This movie put me on the edge of my seat while watching it in theatres and made me think about all the details and plot points leading up to the finale. I had low expectations for this movie, most likely due to the negative press surrounding the movie due to the Harry x Olivia drama, but I was pleasantly surprised at the movie’s end. While watching it, I never once viewed him as “Harry Styles: the singer, former boyband member (love of my life),” but as who he was portraying: a misogynistic, insecure man who cannot deal with not being the breadwinner of the household, and needs to be, in all aspects, in control of the situation he is in. I think that shows how well his acting is in the movie.
My Policeman is a complete 180 from Don’t Worry Darling. This movie was released on October 21, and is only being played in certain theatres. I saw the first showing on opening day at the theatre closest to me, and let me tell you, this movie pulls at your heartstrings. Going in, I thought this movie would be a regular romance with a love triangle plot and the drama that comes with it. It was, however, not like that. My Policeman takes place in 1990s England, while flashbacks to 1950s England occur throughout the movie.
Styles’ character, Tom, is a policeman in his town, where he falls in love with Patrick, a local museum curator, and the two begin to have hidden relations with each other since homosexuality was illegal during that time. In the present time of the movie, Tom’s wife, Marion, takes in Patrick after he has had a stroke, completely debilitating him and causing him to need 24/7 care. While staying at their house, Marion tries to get Tom to talk and spend time with Patrick, but he refuses to acknowledge him. Marion ends up reading Patrick’s diaries, in which he describes details of Tom and his affairs, before and after Tom was married to Marion, and how Patrick has always been in love with Tom but couldn’t be due to his sexuality.
The movie’s climax is when the police arrest Patrick for being gay and he’s sentenced to prison, where he is constantly tormented and beaten by the other prisoners. By the end of the movie, in the present day, Marion confesses to Tom that she was the one who turned Patrick in to the police because she was upset and wanted to help Tom “change” and win her husband back. After this confession, she leaves and spends time at her sister’s place to allow Tom and Patrick to spend time with each other and to make up for the past 40 years when they couldn’t be together.
The acting of this movie also surprised me, especially with how well Styles was able to portray the longing and love towards his love interests, especially Patrick. My Policeman deals with many heavy topics, such as the LGBTQ+ community, how these individuals were treated and looked at badly during this time (especially during the trial and prison scenes), and wanting to “change” someone for who they are because, to them, it is “not right.” Going into this movie, I was not expecting to be emotional by the end, but I was sobbing in my seat because of how sad and touching the storyline was.
Every project, album, and movie that Styles is a part of never disappoints, and he always puts in 110% to ensure the final product is perfect. The versatility of the movies and acting styles he used in both of these movies surprised me and made me want to watch them a thousand more times because of how good they were. Harry Styles is a force to be reckoned with, and I can see him starring in more movies of many genres after his recent successes.