A 2022 American action thriller directed by Anna Foerster that has a mother (Jurnee Smollett) getting help from a mysterious woman (Allison Janney) to rescue her daughter (Ridley Asha Bateman).
The movie also stars Logan Marshall-Green, Matt Craven, Greyston Holt, Daniel Bernhardt, RJ Fetherstonhaugh, Andres Collantes, Marci T House, Toby Levins, and Jaycie Dotin.
It was released on September 23, 2022 on Netflix. No relation to Pixar Shorts Lou (2017).
Tropes for the film:
- Character Title: Lou.
- Deadly Hug: Played with. The titular character is fighting in the surf with her estranged and insane son, only to end up hugging him. While doing so she sees the CIA Black Helicopter she's deliberately drawn there flying towards them, and apologizes before it riddles them both with bullets. Lou's wearing a Bulletproof Vest so she uses this to fake her death.
- Door Handle Scare: Realizing there's an intruder in the house, Vee hides in her room and watches in terror as the deadbolt lock drops out of the door and a tube is pushed through the hole, spraying knockout gas inside.
- Harmless Lady Disguise: Played straight when Lou, a middle-aged female ex-CIA agent, uses this trope to approach a couple of ex-Green Beret associates of the villain and kill them.
- I Can Change My Beloved: Deconstructed. Hannah remained in an abusive relationship for years because she was convinced of this trope, blaming herself because her love wasn't enough to change him. It took her a long time to realize that he was simply evil and what she saw as the good in him was just a facade.
- Knockout Gas: The kidnapper removes the doorknob and inserts a tube that sprays halothane into the child's bedroom.
- One-Word Title: Lou.
- Sleeping Dummy: Lou sees Philip is supposedly wrapped in a sleeping bag next to the little girl he kidnapped. Although she has the chance to snipe him from a distance, she chooses to try sneaking up to him and gets captured because the sleeping bag is a dummy. The Why Don't You Just Shoot Him? moment foreshadows The Reveal that Philip is Lou's estranged son.
- What Does She See in Him?: A discussed trope when Lou tries to push the blame on Hannah for not leaving her son. Hannah then spells out what it's like to be involved with a dangerous sociopath who can play on your love, guilt, and eventually fear to make sure you don't leave.
