Netflix just keeps on cranking out thriller and mystery series and flicks. Just recently, we’ve had Pieces of Her (series) and The Weekend Away (flick) as two perfect examples of how the streaming service likes to deliver this type of content. We’re already doing an episode-by-episode review of Pieces of Her and today, we’re here with a review of The Weekend Away. I’ll try to omit the vast majority of the spoilers since this is a mystery thriller and the fun is in trying to piece things together.
Source Material
The new Netflix movie is indeed adapted from the novel of the same name by Sarah Alderson (2020). They wasted little to no time in turning this novel into a movie and it really does seem to just fit right in with movies that Netflix likes to release.
Premise
As the movie kicks off, we meet Beth (named changed from Orla in the novel) and Kate, who are the proverbial ‘best friends forever’ - at least since college. They are meeting up at a luxurious vacation rental in Croatia for a girls' trip. Beth recently had a baby and could use some time away and Kate is going through a divorce. While they both live in London (Beth an American and Kate a Brit) they haven’t seen much of each other for a while, with Beth’s pregnancy. They start catching up over champagne and we learn that Beth’s marriage to Rob is going through a ‘rough patch’ following the pregnancy, while Kate is happy to spend her new ex-husband’s money on their lavish Croatian adventure.
Kate is really pushing for at least one night of serious partying, which Beth seems less than enthusiastic about. But, she goes along to spend time with her bestie. This leads to more drinking and hitting a club where the night starts to get hazy for Beth. She remembers meeting two attractive guys at the club and the next thing she knows, she is waking up in their vacation rental the next morning, with no sign of Kate.
What's It About?
What follows is Beth’s attempts to locate Kate. She’s sure something bad has happened since Kate’s phone seems to be turned off and she finds a bit of blood in their condo. Beth heads to the locla police to report Kate missing, only to have a male detective largely dismiss her report entirely. A female detective is a bit more inclined to listen but doesn’t take a big interest on Beth’s first visit. It doesn’t help that Kate seems to have a history of flaky and impulsive behavior. Neither Rob (Beth’s husband) nor Kate’s ex-husband are very worried either. We pick up on some signals that Rob may not think much of Kate in general.
But, Beth isn’t entirely alone in her search. Upon arriving in Croatia, she is met by taxi driver, Ziad, who hits it off with her on their first ride and has been hired by Kate to be their on-call driver for the entire trip. Ziad steps up to help Beth in her search, both driving her around and helping her figure out some of the clues from the night Kate went missing. It seems that Beth either got incredibly drunk (which she doesn’t really do) or she may have been drugged.
It’s not long before the police start taking Beth more seriously after Kate’s body is found in the ocean. This is when the plot begins giving us a lot of clues, misdirects, and the usual false leads on the way to figuring out what happened to Kate.
Twists and Turns
Once it becomes clear that Kate was murdered, the suspects start lining up.
The two guys from the club the night she disappeared are obvious candidates and you better believe there are some shady aspects to both of them to explore.
What about Ziad? How many taxi drivers are this helpful? Does he have an ulterior motive?
Why does Rob suddenly show up in Croatia, only to head home almost immediately? Supportive husband or suspicious?
What about Beth herself? As her memory comes together, she seems to remember an argument with Kate the night before. Could she have actually killed her and forgotten the entire thing?
How about some mystery murderer? We’re just not sure.
In the end, the clues are there to help you piece it all together.
Watch it or Not?
This is the definition of a disposable, but entertaining movie. Disposable isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The story also has a bit more going on than a typical B-grade thriller. The acting is believable and people behave pretty reasonably, given their characters. So, with all that, if you like an entertaining, but then largely forgettable thriller, you should definitely put The Weekend Away on your watch list.
