Set in the dry heat of Bakersfield, California, Honey Don’t follows Honey O’Donahue (Margaret Qualley), a hard-drinking detective who is drawn to the scene of a brutal car accident off the highway. Taking the investigation into her own hands, Honey discovers a series of strange deaths that seem inexplicably linked to the town’s church.

Directed by Ethan Coen and co-written with his wife, Tricia Cooke, Honey Don’t follows very neatly on the heels of their last effort together, Drive Away Dolls. While entirely disconnected, both films feature strong female leads (and, more specifically, Margaret Qualley), gritty crime elements and sexually-charged characters. With Honey Don’t, however, Cooke and Coen create a world that feels much more like a modern Western. Qualley’s Honey is a stranger in this town and, as an outsider, she has a different perspective on what’s going on around her.

But, while the town has the law, her only goal is to find the truth.

It’s worth noting that, Qualley is absolutely delightful to watch. Though she’s named Honey, she is anything but sweet. Gritting her teeth, every line that she utters feels fueled by disgust and disappointment with others. Honey may have her own problems but she knows that she isn’t the problem. And Qualley plays her with a quiet fury. (What’s more, her chemistry with Aubrey Plaza is quite strong.)

But balancing her out is another deliciously malicious performance by Chris Evans as the town’s corrupt pastor, Reverand Drew Devlin. Preaching with the same boyish charm that makes him endearing, Evans gets to show his dark side on more than occasion. Yet, that smirk on his face also proves that this supposed man of God cares little about his own sins. Instead, he knows simply uses his charisma to keep up the image of holiness on the pulpit.

Chris Evans stars as Drew Devlin in writer/director Ethan Coen’s HONEY DON’T!, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Karen Kuehn / © 2025 FOCUS FEATURES LLC

And he’s not the only one obsessed with his own image.

Bakersfield may be dry and dusty but it comes alive with its belief in ‘traditional’ values. This is a small-town that keeps the church as its centrepiece of the community and the families that live there keep a tight lid on their secrets. We are meant to believe that they’re average Americans who value what’s ‘normal’… and they like it just fine that way.

The problem is that none of it is real. As Honey exposes the secrets of the community, we see the truths that eat away at their image from underneath. Sexuality may not be talked about but it remains rampant, especially in the church. Violence and corruption take place in broad daylight but people turn a blind eye. To these townsfolk, preserving the image has greater value than what’s real.

Aubrey Plaza stars as MG Falcone and Margaret Qualley as Honey O’Donahue in writer/director Ethan Coen’s HONEY DON’T!, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Courtesy of Focus Features / © 2025 FOCUS FEATURES LLC

But, in the midst of this stands Honey herself. As Honey, Qualley does a good job playing her character as nothing but fully self-realized. Wearing her sexuality and personal flaws on her sleeve, she has no time for falsehood. In many ways, Honey is the very definition of honesty. She cares little what other people think about her and fully acknowledges her flaws.

And that personal freedom simply doesn’t make sense to the people of Bakersfield. To them, she’s an anomaly. Even the town sheriff, a man who repeatedly hopes for to date her, simply dismisses Honey’s claim that she ‘likes girls’ as nonsense. (“You always say that,” he reiterates with ignorance.)

Charlie Day stars as Marty Metakawitch in writer/director Ethan Coen’s HONEY DON’T!, a Focus Features release.
Credit: Courtesy of Focus Features / © 2025 FOCUS FEATURES LLC

But that’s the challenge that Cohen and Cooke embed within their gritty, sexually-charged thriller. Honey Don’t is an exploration in the socially-acceptable views we’ve held in a vice grip, even though the world has moved beyond them. And, as Honey cuts her way through the façade, she speaks with pity for those who refuse to see beyond their own traditions. It’s not that they’re naïve. It’s that they’re frozen in time. To Honey, Bakersfield is just another place that can’t bear to open their eyes to a changing world… and she feels sorry for them. (“One day, hopefully, they’ll see things different,” she laments.)

Admittedly, the film is far from perfect. Despite some elaborate set ups, some storylines don’t pay off in the end (or simply end abruptly). Because the film speeds along at a mere 89 minutes, it doesn’t really give its characters a lot of room to breathe either. Even so, built on the back of strong performances by Qualley and Evans, the film still manages to breathe life into this dusty old town.

Honey Don’t is available in theatres on Friday, August 22nd, 2025.