Ah, the joys of modern dating. Even with all the advantages out there that women have trying to find their soul mate, there’s still layers of guards they have to put up to prevent themselves from being hurt because of the institutional power dynamics. Don’t believe me? Ask poor Noa (Daisy Edgar-Jones), star of Mimi Cave’s Fresh, how important it is to make sure you trust the right person.
Noa doesn’t really have any family, and really only has one friend, Mollie (Jonica T. Gibbs). Noa’s dipped her toes into the online dating game, but only finds hipster douchebags only looking for hookups. One day, Noa bumps into Steve (Sebastian Stan) at the supermarket, and the pair hit it off right away. Their whirlwind romance sweeps them into a romantic weekend getaway, where Steve’s romantic veil lifts to reveal something wholly terrifyingly untrustworthy.
Despite the sheer audacity of where the story goes, Fresh really showcases the extreme version of all the trials and tribulations women have to overcome simply to just…find love, especially if he’s “old fashioned.” Steve is wholly convinced of who he is, so Noa’s existence naturally for him, is to support all of his choices, good and bad, or she faces consequences because she hurt his feelings. If she rebels, there’s societal forces helping Steve keep her down, like other men not wanting to snitch, female allies entranced by Steve, and male driven police organizations distrustful of Noa’s stories of fear. As such, Noa is forced into donning a subservient persona when around him to keep the peace and safety, but over time infects her brain with a loss of her own self worth, thinking she’s only defined by her man. Fresh is a testament to girl power, because you overcome that loss of self confidence through friends who help give you perspective and confidence. Mollie is always there encouraging Noa to be her best self, and there are other women Noa meets that she can help/help her along the way too.
The success of Fresh relies on the courtship/dalliance between Daisy Edgar-Jones and Sebastian Stan. Stan gets the showier part, playing every woman’s worst nightmare inside of a gorgeous, seemingly benign package. Male Id incarnate. Daisy Edgar-Jones has the harder part, but the more impressive one. You see over the course of Fresh how Edgar-Jones gives Noa more layers and false personas to use on Steve, and how she juggles them all while under an insane amount of fear and stress. Any woman forced to endure some sh*t heel of a male love interest will find something to relate to and admire about Edgar-Jones’s performance. The two work perfectly off each other, as the emotions on his sleeve Sebastian Stan is witness to Daisy Edgar-Jones giving him what he wants but to the unblinded audience we see the gears turning in her head how to manipulate him out of her predicament.
Fresh is an important safety reminder for women out there. Always leave your phone on, and always have some friends at the ready in case you need someone to get you out of a sticky situation. Also, maybe try 5-10 dates before plunging headfirst into a relationship with the marble cut man at the supermarket to make sure he isn’t a sociopath.