Holland – Film Review

After the success of her film Fresh a few years back, one would think that highly talented director Mimi Cave‘s next project would be just as memorable and unique. Unfortunately though, that’s not the case. In fact, watching her newest film Holland, you wouldn’t even be able to tell that the stylish filmmaker even directed the project because of the sheer lack of intrigue on display here.

The film promises an unnerving descent into a small-town mystery that slowly unravels a sinister truth. However, despite its atmospheric tension and an alluring premise, Holland struggles to maintain narrative momentum and ends up feeling more like a half-baked suspense drama rather than a gripping psychological thriller.

The film introduces us to Nancy Vandergroot (Nicole Kidman), a mild-mannered teacher in the quiet town of Holland, Michigan. At first glance, she leads a comfortable life with her husband, Fred (Matthew Macfadyen), and their son, Harry (Jude Hill). However, Nancy soon begins to suspect that Fred might be keeping dark secrets from her. His increasingly frequent business trips and inexplicable collection of Polaroid photographs—despite their lack of a camera—lead her to believe something sinister is at play. Seeking answers, she turns to Dave Delgado (Gael García Bernal), a shop teacher at her school, to help uncover the truth about her husband.

The premise itself is compelling—there’s an undercurrent of unease that keeps the audience engaged, at least initially. The setting of a small Midwestern town enhances the film’s tension, creating an environment where secrets lurk beneath the surface of an otherwise peaceful facade. Mimi Cave employs a slow-burn approach, carefully constructing an atmosphere of uncertainty that gradually builds toward the film’s final act. Yet, for all its intriguing elements, Holland never quite capitalizes on its own potential.

One of Holland’s most significant shortcomings is its pacing. While psychological thrillers often benefit from a slow, meticulous unraveling of the plot, this film lingers too long on mundane details that don’t add much to the overall tension. Scenes meant to evoke suspense feel repetitive, lacking the necessary escalation to make her discoveries feel truly shocking.

The film also suffers from a predictability problem. The narrative hints at deeper, more complex twists but ultimately delivers conclusions that feel telegraphed from the very beginning. Certain visual cues, such as Fred’s elaborate model train set mimicking real-life crimes, are eerie but also too overt, stripping away the ambiguity that could have made the mystery more compelling. Instead of peeling back layers of deception in a way that keeps the audience guessing, Holland lays out its major revelations in a way that leaves little room for genuine surprise.

Despite the film’s narrative shortcomings, Holland benefits from a talented cast that does its best to elevate the material. Nicole Kidman brings her signature gravitas to Nancy, portraying a woman torn between fear and resolve. While the script doesn’t always give her much to work with, Kidman still manages to convey an effective mix of suspicion, dread, and determination.

Matthew Macfadyen, known for his ability to balance charm and menace (Succession, Pride & Prejudice), is well-cast as Fred. There’s an unsettling quality to his performance, making it easy to believe that something might be lurking beneath his seemingly affable demeanor. However, Fred remains a frustratingly underdeveloped character, never quite reaching the level of psychological complexity that would make him a truly memorable antagonist.

Gael García Bernal as Dave Delgado is perhaps the film’s most underutilized asset. While he provides an interesting contrast to Fred, his character feels disappointingly one-dimensional. The dynamic between Dave and Nancy has potential, but the film never fully explores it, making his role feel like an afterthought rather than an integral piece of the narrative.

Cave showcases a clear talent for crafting an eerie atmosphere. The cinematography in Holland effectively captures the unease of suburban life, using muted color palettes and dimly lit interiors to reflect Nancy’s growing paranoia. The film’s sound design also plays a crucial role in building suspense, utilizing eerie silences and ambient noises to heighten tension.

However, strong direction can only do so much when the script lacks the necessary depth. While Cave establishes a moody aesthetic, she doesn’t fully capitalize on it to create moments of genuine dread. The film’s tension builds sporadically but never reaches the kind of heart-pounding intensity that defines truly great psychological thrillers.

A good psychological thriller should culminate in a climax that is both shocking and inevitable—a moment where all the carefully planted narrative seeds pay off in a way that feels both unexpected and earned. Holland falls short in this regard. While the film’s final confrontation delivers some much-needed action, it lacks the emotional or psychological weight to make it truly satisfying.

Rather than delivering a gut-wrenching resolution that lingers in the mind, Holland ends on a note that feels abrupt and underwhelming. It’s a conclusion that wraps things up without truly exploring the deeper emotional fallout of Nancy’s ordeal. Instead of a profound examination of trust, deception, or survival, the film leaves the audience with a sense of “that’s it?” rather than a lingering feeling of unease.

Holland had the potential to be a riveting psychological thriller, boasting a strong lead in Nicole Kidman and an unsettling premise. However, its sluggish pacing, predictable twists, and underdeveloped characters ultimately prevent it from reaching its full potential. While there are moments of intrigue and tension, they are too few and far between to sustain the film’s runtime.

Mimi Cave’s direction provides some atmospheric flair, and the performances—particularly from Kidman and Macfadyen—add credibility to the film’s tension. However, Holland struggles to deliver the kind of gripping, edge-of-your-seat storytelling that makes for a truly memorable thriller. Instead, it feels like a film that treads familiar ground without bringing anything new or particularly compelling to the genre.