Cassandra (Carey Mulligan) is haunted by a tragedy from her past. On the cusp of her thirtieth birthday she is still living at home and working in a coffee shop having dropped out of her medical degree. On the weekends she spends her time at nightspots, pretending to be blind drunk, laying in wait for that considerate man who offers to take her home. Of course if their concern is not entirely sincere she is ready to turn on them.

As we follow Cassie through her life we slowly start to unearth pieces of the trauma that has impacted her so completely. It has resulted in her closing off from her life. Her parents (Clancy Brown and Jennifer Coolidge) are heartbroken. They love her so much but are completely at a loss to know how to help her other than to keep offering her the love and safety of her childhood home. Her best friend and employer Gail (Laverne Cox) knows that she could be doing so much more with her life but continues to employ her and overlook her occasional customer service faux pas.

Then the possibility of redemption arrives. An old medical student friend comes into the coffee shop. Dr. Ryan Cooper (Bo Burnham) is immediately smitten and takes the time and care to try and court Cassie. Whilst Cassie’s guard against men is not easy to get past Ryan slowly but surely wins her over. Their relationship burgeons. But then something else from Cassie’s past rears its head again and she is sent on a spiral of revenge that may or may not give her the catharsis that she has been chasing.

Emerald Fennell has crafted a stunning feature film debut. As writer and director she has made a film that crosses genre boundaries and takes you to places you would never imagine. There is humour and darkness and it puts a blazing spotlight on the patriarchal society that protects men and promotes the “boys will be boys” attitude. Those targets are not just men though, they are anyone who enables that behaviour.

At the very heart of the film is Carey Mulligan in a career high performance. High praise indeed for someone with her track record. The manner in which she is able to instil Cassie’s fragility and her nihilistic drive to uncover those who created the trauma in her life is phenomenal. You desperately want her to find a resolution and hope against everything stacked against her that she will.

Another area of the film that I found fascinatingly brilliant is the soundtrack. Using an assortment of sugary pop hits with the occasional tweak the film adds a lightness to its dark undertones. One scene set to Paris Hilton’s “Stars Are Blind” would probably go down as a romantic comedy classic were this a romantic comedy.

Promising Young Woman is an exceptional film. It features an all time great lead performance and has a story that takes you to completely unexpected places. It also casts a light on a social problem that our society needs to fix.