Movie review
February 19, 2021 · 119 min · R
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
I Care a Lot is a 2021 black comedy crime thriller written and directed by J Blakeson. Rosamund Pike plays Marla Grayson, a cold con artist who uses fake medical claims and court orders to become legal guardian of wealthy elderly people, locks them in care homes, and drains their money and property. Her girlfriend and business partner Fran helps run the scheme until one target turns out to be the mother of a powerful Russian crime boss, triggering a brutal revenge story. The film shows a visible lesbian relationship between the two leads and includes occasional feminist lines from Marla that frame her greed as female empowerment, though these moments are cynical and tied to her villainy rather than any serious social message.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for I Care a Lot.
Woke representation / casting
Prominent lesbian relationship between leads with visible intimacy and partnership; supporting cast includes natural ethnic diversity for a contemporary U.S. setting. No race or gender swaps or heavy DEI signaling.
Woke political dialogue
Marla uses occasional feminist rhetoric about women, power, and men to justify her crimes; the lines feel cynical and are widely read as satire of “girlboss” attitudes rather than genuine advocacy.
Identity-driven story themes
The queer romance is audience-visible and positive but remains secondary to the greed, scam, and revenge plot; identity is not the driver of character arcs or messaging.
Western institutional / cultural critique
Sharp satire of predatory guardianship laws, bureaucratic exploitation of the elderly, and raw capitalism; includes cynical weaponization of feminist language by the villain but no modern activist framing around patriarchy, whiteness, or systemic identity oppression.
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant.
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Some 2021 audience members specifically called out the feminist lines and girlboss portrayal as annoying or preachy, contributing to lower audience scores and review bombing; complaints treat these elements as identity-flavored but stay limited rather than a broad cultural flashpoint.
Creator track record context
Core team shows no recurring pattern of identity politics, DEI emphasis, or activist creative work; the inclusion of queer elements and feminist dialogue appears incidental to the satirical thriller tone.
Production
