‘Plucked’ Review: A Gilded Age Dinner Party Worth Crashing

Usher Morgan and Katie Vincent’s $300,000 period film combines a marriage in collapse with beautifully constructed scenes, assured visual storytelling, and nearly perfect casting.

Admirers of “Downton Abbey” and “The Gilded Age,” along with devoted listeners of murder-mystery podcasts, will find much to love in “Plucked,” directed by Usher Morgan and Katie Vincent. Blending dark comedy, drama and suspense, the film follows a woman whose decision to divorce her volatile husband turns a Gilded Age New York dinner party into an evening of jealousy, betrayal and revenge. Thoughtfully constructed, beautifully shot and almost perfectly cast, “Plucked” creates a world so inviting that you want to step inside despite every warning to stay far, far away.

Photo 1: Katie Vincent as Katherine Greene, seen from behind beneath a bridal veil, in “Plucked.” Photo Credit: Dark Passage Films

Katherine Greene (Katie Vincent) wants out of her marriage to Peter (Jared Canfield), her emotionally unstable husband. Her decision collides with a high-stakes dinner party, and the couple’s private conflict spills into the festivities as guests gather. Secrets emerge, jealousy takes hold, and old resentments give way to revenge. What begins as a carefully staged social occasion descends into violent chaos, with Katherine’s attempt to break free caught in the middle.

Photo 2: Katie Vincent as Katherine Greene, her face and white clothing spattered with blood, in “Plucked.” Photo Credit: Dark Passage Films.

Morgan and Vincent blend dark comedy, farce and menace as the marriage unravels amid the rituals of polite society. What stands out is how well the scenes are constructed, individually and together: Each contributes to the appeal of this world while giving us another reason to distrust it. The filmmakers sustain the tension between the invitation to look closer and the impulse to get away.

The casting is nearly perfect, but the actress playing an older woman at the dinner table is a conspicuous exception. Her loud, clumsy delivery feels stiff and forced, and her overreaching performance stands out for the wrong reasons beside her fellow players. It is a casting misstep compounded by acting that throws off the otherwise carefully achieved rhythm of the ensemble.

That misstep stands out precisely because the surrounding work is so assured. As appearances crumble and civility gives way to cruelty, the dinner becomes a battleground for pride, power, and survival, with the filmmakers keeping Katherine’s struggle at the center of the escalating disorder.

Creating Gilded Age New York on a $300,000 Budget

I am equally impressed by Guiseppe Masi’s cinematography, the music selections, the sound and production design, and the editing. Together, they give “Plucked” its visual appeal and rhythm, making each scene compelling in its own right while contributing to the evening’s escalating volatility.

That achievement is particularly striking for a Gilded Age period film made on a budget of $300,000. “Plucked” was shot in Newport, Rhode Island, as on-set COVID regulations eased, with costumes sourced from Ukrainian designers during Russia’s full-scale invasion. Its richly realized setting draws us in without disguising the jealousy, resentment and cruelty beneath the surface.

Production Credits

“Plucked”

Genre: Comedy, drama, thriller

Running time: 110 minutes

Directors: Usher Morgan and Katie Vincent

Writers: Usher Morgan and Katie Vincent.

Producers: Usher Morgan and Katie Vincent

Cast: Katie Vincent (Katherine Greene), Jared Canfield (Peter), Catherine Curtin (Maggie), J. Anthony Crane (James), Bryant Carroll (Nigel) and Susan Gallagher (Emilie); also featuring Fred Sullivan.

Cinematographer: Guiseppe Masi

Budget: $300,000

Filming location: Newport, Rhode Island

Production details: Filmed as on-set COVID regulations eased; costumes sourced from Ukrainian designers during Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Production company website: Dark Passage Films.

“A deliciously vicious dinner party in a world you can’t resist entering.”

—Lapacazo Sandoval, AmNews Curtain Raiser