Honey Don’t!

Summary

“And Marty… I like girls.”

The Coen Brothers are some of my favorite filmmakers. I grew up watching their films and I adore a good amount of the movies they made during their partnership. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and the brothers went on hiatus a few years ago after making their 2018 anthology film The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. Both brothers have pursued other projects. In 2021, Joel made The Tragedy of Macbeth starring Denzel Washington. He has not directed another film since. Ethan chose to focus on crafting a “Lesbian B-movie trilogy” with his wife Tricia Cooke. The first of those films Drive-Away Dolls was released in 2024, and now the second entry in the trilogy Honey Don’t! has been released in 2025. Both pictures have found critics and admirers, but they have not received universal acclaim like so many of the Coen Brothers films. Ready to form my own opinion, I watched Honey, Don’t! the other night.

The plot of the picture revolves around a small-town private investigator named Honey O’Donahue (Margaret Qualley.) In Bakersfield, California, Honey is called to the scene of a traffic fatality by homicide detective Marty Matekawitch (Charlie Day.) A car has flipped and a young woman named Mia Novotny is dead inside. Mia had contacted Honey to enlist her services, but they had not yet met. Due to the death of the “client,” Honey begins to investigate the circumstances of her demise. At the same time, Honey tries to help Mr. Siegfried (Billy Eichner) to find out if his boyfriend has been unfaithful. Mia was connected with a local church known as the Four-Way Temple, led by Reverend Drew Devlin (Chris Evans.) Devlin is sexually promiscuous, particularly with his congregants, and he is using the church as a headquarters for funneling drug money and dealing drugs. In fact, Devlin had called in his liaison Cherè (Lera Abova) to remove a Temple ring off of Mia before the police found her body. As Honey investigates the two cases, she begins a sexualized relationship with evidence handler MG (Aubrey Plaza.) Bodies begin to pile up in the small town due to drug violence and other strange coincidences between the two cases.

Honey Don’t! was an extremely divisive film for audiences. If you look online, critics largely dismissed the film, and audiences overwhelmingly disparaged the picture. Part of the reason why I think this film (and also Drive-Away Dolls) were hard sells for both critics and audiences was the films’ very sexual approach to the lesbian experience mixed with the quaint sensibilities of one Coen brother. I think after watching so many years of largely sexless Coen Brothers films, these sex drenched pictures feel a little strange. 

Tricia Cooke and Ethan Coen have been married since 1993 and have two children. Tricia identifies as a lesbian and they both have partners outside their marriage. This is obviously a nontraditional relationship, and it informs their writing together for better or worse. The screenplay for Honey Don’t! has some intriguing moments and a plot that keeps things moving. Unfortunately, in the final third of the picture, the film doesn’t conclude in a wholly satisfying fashion (in my opinion.) I think that what these collaborations struggle with is a lack of the surgical precision that marked the best of the Coen Brothers’ writing. For example, Miller’s Crossing stands as one of the most perfectly written films I have ever seen. Not a wasted word. No plot point is too small to be tied up in a satisfying way. Honey Don’t! has style and fun performances from its cast, but it is not as tightly woven a tale as the audience would hope. One reviewer bemoaned that there simply wasn’t any there there, and I can’t help but feel like they were not incorrect.

The casting in the picture is above reproach. Margaret Qualley is a star on the rise. She is great in the lead role of Honey and carries the picture whenever she is onscreen (which is the majority of the screen time.) Chris Evans plays against type as a pompous creep and I enjoyed every moment of his performance. If you enjoyed his role in Knives Out, I think this performance will make you chuckle. I always enjoy Aubrey Plaza, and she throws herself into the role of MG, even appearing topless for an extended scene in bed with Honey. The role is not extremely flattering for the actress, and she commits fully. Charlie Day is fun to see in the film, although his character’s dialogue in particular seemed like it needed a bit more padding out. As one could expect, the film is framed well. The shots may not feel as meticulous as on some of the Coen pictures, but cinematographer Ari Wegner seemed to capture what Cooke and Coen were aiming for. The editing by Tricia Cooke is also above reproach. That should come as no surprise because Tricia has shown her talent editing pictures on films such as O Brother, Where Art Thou? and The Big Lebowski. 

Watching Honey Don’t!, I felt myself landing somewhere in the middle on the film. I can’t say that I loved it. The finale fell somewhat flat for me, which was a disappointment. That said, I could see myself revisiting this picture in the future and liking it better on a second viewing. That would not be unusual. Therefore, I think one would do best to look at a few reviews and see if it will appeal to them prior to purchasing. This movie may best be served by a rental prior to a purchase.

Video

Honey Don’t! has been released onto Blu-ray in its original aspect ratio of 1.85:1. The Blu-ray presentation is in 1080p. The film was shot on Arri Alex35 cameras with Canon FD prime lenses. It was mastered in 4K for its theatrical release, which the 1080p release is downscaled from. The good news is that the digital transfer sits on a 50GB disc, and, without any special features, it is given plenty of space. I thought the film looked pretty great. Cinematographer Ari Wegner highlights the New Mexico locations (subbing in for Bakersfield, California) well. The film has a distinct sun-drenched look, and while it does not jump off the screen as memorably as some of the other film by Joel and Ethan Coen, it works. Fans of the picture will be very happy with the Blu-ray, which will be the best option unless a 4K UHD release comes along. 

Audio

The DTS-HD MA 5.1 track sounds great. The film is centered on dialogue, but the surrounds are used effectively. The soundtrack is interesting because it largely relies on more contemporary music by Brittany Howard, Alvvays, Kitty Wells and others. The score by Carter Burwell blends into the surroundings of the picture well. Clarity is excellent. I have no complaints.

Supplements:

• None

Overall Scores:

Video: 4.75/5

Audio: 4.5/5

Supplements: 0/5

Overall – 3.5/5

Honey Don’t! was neither critically or commercially successful. Audiences were divided on their reaction to the film. I found myself landing somewhere in the middle on the film. I neither loved nor hated the film. The picture has an interesting premise, solid cast, and a cool setting. Unfortunately, Honey Don’t! is a little underwritten and the finale definitely lacks something. This is a picture that I very well might enjoy better on a second viewing, so I am having trouble deciding on what type of recommendation it receives. I might need to come back and adjust my score if I find that the film grows on me in future viewings. For the time being, I would recommend a rental prior to a blind buy. You also may want to check out some more reviews, because the movie really seemed to cause very divided audience reactions. If you like the film, Universal Pictures has given Honey, Don’t! a solid Blu-ray presentation which looks and sounds great, but is sadly without a single supplemental feature (not even a trailer.) Maybe at some point the film will be given a 4K release, but for now this is the best way to own the film.

The film can be purchased at www.moviezyng.com.