‘Holland’: Home Is Where The Horror Is [SXSW 2025 Review]
Life often doesn’t turn out the way we hope it will. Many people find themselves settling for jobs and romantic partners out of comfort and assumed necessity. This leaves them with “what ifs” and many unresolved feelings. So, what happens when you begin to look at the person you married and realize you don’t really know them? What happens when you figure out your constant yearning for a different life isn’t going away? Do you pick at the scabs of your relationship until they bleed? If you do, you might be shocked at what you find under the skin. This is where Mimi Cave’s (Fresh) Holland creeps into the crevices of your mind and begins to play on that paranoia.
The film drives home the idea that we can never really know a person. However, when you share your life with someone, you would like to think you know them pretty well. What would you do if you believed that your significant other was leading a double life? How far would you go to get answers? What would you do if their secret turned out to be something wilder than a simple affair? These are the pressing questions at the heart of Holland.
Nicole Kidman is no stranger to playing the perfect wife who lives a picturesque life about to get turned upside down. Here, she plays Nancy, who is another delightfully kooky character in Kidman’a repertoire. Kidman is undeniably locked into this character, and it’s one of the things working in Holland’s favor. Luckily for audiences, Matthew Macfadyen matches Nicole Kidman’s freak. Macfadyen plays Fred, Nancy’s husband, who is a pillar of their odd little community. We know something is off in their marriage, but we can never quite put our finger on it. We are left to assume Nancy is simply tired of the life she settled for and yearning for one that might be more interesting. This makes complete sense until the twisted third-act reveal where the real secret is finally unearthed.
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Holland spends most of its runtime masquerading as a fun romp focused on a woman who needs to address her unspoken desire to escape her suburban wife and mother rut. Even Nancy’s dreams are about how she has outgrown this suffocating life and is drowning in this bland world. So, she needs her husband’s affair to be true so that she has a good reason to leave.
Her husband’s infidelity would also free her up to have an affair with her colleague Dave (Gael García Bernal), who she seems more passionate about. Their sexual tension is palpable, but it soon becomes apparent that their friendship is only platonic until further notice. Holland is about many things. However, each character’s struggle to find something that excites them is at the forefront.
Mimi Cave manages to wring Andrew Sodroski’s script of every drop of humor. There is even a surprising DMX needle drop, which is one of the biggest giggles of the film. However, the movie doesn’t really grab your attention until the third act. There is a huge revelation that happens in the most chaotic way possible. When the slow burn finally boils over, genre fans will stop wondering if they’re in the wrong theater. This is where Holland rewards the audience members who stuck it out. While I love the reveal, I wish there was more of this energy flowing throughout the film.
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Holland’s surprising turn will win many viewers over. It is also impossible to not lean into Macfadyen and Kidman’s electric chemistry as scene partners. We want to buy their odd marriage, and I hope they get to work together on a different project soon. However, the first two acts feel like a chore and will lose so many people before the movie gets to the good stuff. While it was fun getting to know these characters, the film does start to feel like a filler episode of Desperate Housewives.
We also have so many things that are never fully explored like Dave’s backstory. There is no resolution to the random incident where a truckful of racists interrupt Dave and Nancy to hurl slurs at Dave. We also never get the full picture of what Fred and Nancy allude to when they speak of a major conflict they had earlier in their relationship. These are a few things that dangle over the movie and leave us asking if it earned its runtime.
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Overall, Holland is a quaint movie that will find its intended audience. While it is not for everyone, I think it is worth a watch. The performances are amazing, and the third act is a ton of bloody fun. So, there are worse ways to spend an evening. Films that are just fine deserve our attention and are crucial in this moment where the internet loves extremes. Not every movie is a five-star life changer or a one-star mistake. So, cuddle up with this movie and celebrate the parts that work. Then go see this cast and director in stronger projects.
Holland arrives on Prime Video on March 27.
Did you also catch Holland at SXSW? Then find me on Bluesky so we can compare notes.
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Holland
Summary
Overall, Holland is a quaint movie that will find its intended audience. While it is not for everyone, I think it is worth a watch. The performances are amazing, and the third act is a ton of bloody fun. So, there are worse ways to spend an evening.
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