“Honey Don’t!” The title sounds teasing, but ultimately serves as a warning. Unless you are a Coen Brothers completist, you may want to steer clear of this second solo outing from brother Ethan (as director and co-writer).
All the pieces are in place for a playful, modern-day noir, starting with an eclectic cast that includes Margaret Qualley, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Evans, Charlie Day, Billy Eichner, and Talia Ryder. Cinematographer Ari Wegner (“The Power of the Dog”) captures the dusty streets of Bakersfield, California, in faded postcard hues. The retro-chic costume design from Peggy Schnitzer is consistently on point. And longtime Coens collaborator Carter Burwell conjures an air of mystery with the Western-tinged score.
But in following up last year’s superior “Drive-Away Dolls,” Coen once again has written the script with wife Tricia Cooke, and it just doesn’t add up to much. There’s a folksy musicality to the dialogue, and everyone’s just a teensy bit sleazy (or extremely sleazy, when it comes to Evans’ character). But ultimately, there’s nothing to these people or the danger at the story’s center. At best, “Honey Don’t!” is a sporadically amusing lark.
Qualley stars as private investigator Honey O’Donohue, who shows up at the scene of a fatal car crash and quickly suspects it was no accident. (Day is the clueless local homicide detective who keeps asking her out, even though she’s made it clear that she’s a lesbian and not the slightest bit interested in him). The victim had just contacted her the previous day, so she believes something is amiss. The role allows Qualley (who also starred in “Drive-Away Dolls”) to use her height and her swagger as she saunters into every room in blouses, trousers, and heels. She’s up for the verbal challenges of the part, which makes you wish Coen and Cooke had given her more compelling things to say.
The victim is somehow connected to a storefront church where Evans’s Rev. Drew Devlin rules through a combination of charisma and intimidation. It’s been a joy to watch Evans seize on darker and meatier roles post-Marvel—this year’s “Materialists” is some of the best work he’s ever done—but the scheming sex fiend he plays here is too obviously villainous. (In one humorous exchange, Devlin asks Honey, “Do you drink?” Her snappy response: “Heavily, it’s a point of pride.”)
More bodies pile up as Honey continues to investigate. She also needs to keep an eye on her niece (Ryder), a fast-food worker who’s involved with an obviously abusive boyfriend. And she embarks on a steamy affair with Plaza’s MG, a stoic, anti-social cop with an edge to her personality. Their sex scenes are intense, and kudos to Coen for not softening or romanticizing them—although what they do to each other in a crowded, well-lighted bar without anyone noticing seems implausible. But the way their relationship takes a turn toward the end comes completely out of nowhere and makes no sense tonally. Is it meant to be campy? It’s hard to tell. Anyway, it doesn’t work.
“Honey Don’t!” tends to meander; you’ll forget what exactly is at the heart of the case Honey is trying to solve. And maybe that’s intentional. Maybe, as in the Coens’ cult-favorite “The Big Lebowski,” the atmosphere and the menagerie of weirdoes is the point within a contemporary noir setting. The difference is, there was a consistency of lines and images, a hypnotic repetition, and a cohesion that—if you’ll pardon the reference—really tied the room together.
Here, there are almost too many characters and subplots, and they all feel scattered. So when a long-lost relative shows up and it’s meant to be poignant (or at least revelatory), the screenplay hasn’t laid the groundwork for that emotion. As the film trudges toward its conclusion, it’s one frustrating scene after another like that. And by the end, you’ll realize the clever opening title sequence was probably the best part of all.
