‘Honey, Don’t!’: Honey, Don’t Go See This Coen Brother Film

BY Mark Jackson TIMEAugust 24, 2025

Drew Devlin (Chris Evans) is a cult leader, in "Honey, Don't!" (Focus Features)

R | 1h 29m | Neo-Noir Thriller | 2025

I was already having issues with the neo-noir “Honey, Don’t!” by the time the main character (Margaret Qualley) spies a political bumper sticker and immediately defaces it. But truthfully, it was over for me after the opening credit roll. As a long-time fan of the Coen Brothers’ typically excellent, quirky, comedic fare, I’d forgotten this movie features only one Coen brother directing.

What I’d also forgotten is that “Honey, Don’t” is part of a series: This episode is the second film in Ethan Coen and co-writer Tricia Cooke’s planned trilogy of “lesbian B-movies,” of which “Drive-Away Dolls” was the first installment. In their own words, they wanted to create a series of “tatty lesbian exploitation pictures.” We had blaxploitation movies in the 1970s, so I guess that makes this … lezploitation? Whatdya think—should it be one or two z’s?

Set in Bakersfield, California, “Honey, Don’t!,” while filled with the usual Coen-esque types of quirky, memorable characters—is barely funny and basically just all kinds of nasty.

The ‘Plot’

The film follows Honey O’Donahue (Qualley, currently one of my favorite actresses), a private eye known for infidelity cases. She investigates the suspicious death of a local woman who apparently drove off a cliff shortly after calling Honey on the phone.

wome in white shirt in Honey Don't! — Honey O’Donahue (Margaret Qualley) is a detective, in “Honey, Don’t!” (Focus Features)

Honey unearths a conspiracy involving the charismatic, megalomaniacal, and sex-crazed Reverend Drew Devlin (ironically played by Chris Evans of “Captain America” fame). He’s the leader of a nearby religious cult, and he preys upon emotionally vulnerable individuals.

Honey is also drawn into the dangerous world of the town’s dark secrets, an unexpected romance (with a character played by another of my favorite actresses), as well as her own highly unstable family-of-origin. There’s a serial killer on the loose who’s connected to both the nefarious church and the dead bodies piling up around town.

Extreme Radicalism

A review in “Religion Unplugged” sees the film as a “culture-war fable” in which the dysfunction caused by “heteronormative and religious institutions” is resolved by the outsider Honey, a secular lesbian. “Heteronormative”: In the same way Native-Americans refused to learn settler-English, this terminology gives me hives.

woman in a red dress with a blue car in Honey Don't! — Honey O’Donahue (Margaret Qualley) is on the job as a detective investigating a suspect church, in “Honey, Don’t!” (Focus Features)

She must contend with incompetent and corrupt institutions “dominated by men and traditional values.” *Ahem.* One such example is police detective Marty Metakawitch (Charlie Day) who harries Honey like a hound dog, eternally refusing to acknowledge her repeated mantra—“I keep telling you, I like girls.”

The lack of narrative focus is clearly a deliberate subversion of the typical noir detective story, where solving the case is the primary driver. The central crime—the death of Honey’s client—is treated less like a solvable mystery and more like a backdrop for absurdity and character exploration. Honey never gets around to solving the central crime because she’s too busy seducing women and swatting away randy men. This is, after all, lezzzploitation. I’m liking three z’s for my new word. Somebody call Webster.

two in a bar in Honey Don't! — MG Falcone (Aubrey Plaza, L) is a cop, and Honey O’Donahue (Margaret Qualley) is a detective, in “Honey, Don’t!” (Focus Features)

You Know What? I’m Glad

All in all, while the movie explores its themes via the all-over-the-place plot, quirky characters, and focus on queer relationships with a dark comedic and amoral tone, it’s not really chuckle-worthy. And that’s saying something, because Margaret Qualley and Aubrey Plaza are currently two of the best comedic actresses in the business.

At The Epoch Times, we try to focus on uplifting fare, but I’m actually glad this one snuck under my radar. Maybe it’s not a bad thing for us to get an occasional whiff—like the gag-worthy waft of skunk-roadkill that got inside my motorcycle helmet last weekend and snapped me out of a dangerous daydream—of just how decadent things are getting these days.

Promotional poster for "Honey, Don't!" (Focus Features) — Promotional poster for “Honey, Don’t!” (Focus Features)

‘Honey, Don’t!’
Director: Ethan Coen
Starring: Margaret Qualley, Chris Evans, Aubrey Plaza, Charlie Day
MPAA Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 29 minutes
Release Date: Aug. 22, 2025
Rating: 1/2 star out of 5

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Mark Jackson

Film Critic

Mark Jackson is the senior film critic for The Epoch Times and a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic. Mark earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Williams College, followed by classical theater conservatory training, and has 20 years' experience as a New York professional actor. He narrated The Epoch Times audiobook "How the Specter of Communism Is Ruling Our World," available on iTunes, Audible, and YouTube. Mark is featured in the book "How to Be a Film Critic in Five Easy Lessons" by Christopher K. Brooks. In addition to films, he enjoys Harley-Davidsons, rock-climbing, qigong, martial arts, and human rights activism.

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