One of the sadder aspects of how Hollywood perceives Christians is that they are tied to White Nationalism.  Unfortunately, they are not entirely wrong, and there are currently people in our government who believe such things and call themselves followers of Christ.  In reflecting on it, if my name was Rebecca, it would be enough for me to want a story about me to be called The Wrath of Becky (2023).  Instead, I am blessed to be a Catholic and part of a Church that eschews violence in the name of uplifting society.  To be clear, White Nationalism does nothing to change things for the better, quite the opposite.  Further, it warms my heart to be part of a Faith whose leader, Pope Leo XIV, exhorts nations and people to live peacefully with one another.  The story I am about to relate to you is somebody not doing those things, but still confronting some truly evil people.  I do not condone her actions, but her adversaries are worse.

Actually, one could argue that The Wrath of Becky begins with some pretty bad behavior on the title character’s (Lulu Wilson) part.  In a montage she narrates, Becky talks about how her family had been murdered by Neo-Nazis.  She had been able to kill them despite her young age, but not before the others had died.  Now sixteen, she is being taken to another in a string of foster homes.  Her modus operandi is to first gain their trust, making them think that she is the perfect girl, and then sneak out in the middle of the night.  This leads into the opening credits wherein we see her obtain a dog she names Diego, hones her killing skills, and meets someone who picks her up as a hitchhiker.  That person is Elena (Denise Burse), and she provides Becky a home for a couple years while she continues to train.  We also see that Becky has a job as a waitress at the nearby diner in this small town, though she imagines gruesome deaths for customers that annoy her.  The one safe place for her is Elena’s, but on the news one night they hear about the rise of a White Nationalist group called the Noble Men that is spreading across the country, especially in tiny communities like theirs.  The next day at work, a group of them, flying their flag on the back of their pick-up truck (which vaguely looks like the “Don’t Tread on Me” banner), stop at her restaurant.  The more vocal of the three, Anthony (Michael Sirow), rudely demands coffee.  Instead of simply setting the mug down on the table, Becky “accidentally” shoves it into his lap.  Not willing to let the sleight go, the three follow Becky to Elena’s place and break into the premises in the early hours of the morning.  Becky goes down into the living room and is grabbed by Anthony, but gets free by using the back of her head to smash his face.  She is about to have Diego attack the rest, but the dog is knocked out by DJ (Aaron Dalla Villa).  DJ then pulls a gun on her, but this is when Elena enters the room with a shotgun.  Elena gets DJ to put the weapon on the floor, but Anthony pulls out his own firearm and shoots her in through her skull.  An enraged Becky is then knocked out, awakening in the morning to find Diego gone and Elena dead on the floor next to her.  After Becky sees to Elena’s burial, the teenager prepares for revenge.  Once more, this is not Catholic behavior, but one can understand her ire.  She has also overheard them talking about going to see a person named Darryl.  She rules out the first (Jill Larson) when it turns out to be an old lady smoking while attached to an oxygen tank.  The other is Darryl Jr. (Seann William Scott), a former United States (US) Army Ranger, and one of the leaders of the Noble Men.  Anthony, DJ, and their other companion, Sean (Matt Angel), are inside Darryl’s house, discussing their plans for the next day with Twig (Courtney Gains), another high-ranking Noble Men.  Their scheme is to attack a political rally being held for a US senator, part of their overarching desire to rid the country of what they deem to be undesirables.  Sean is not only uneasy about the plot, but he has their activities from the previous night on his brain.  Sensing something is off with him, Darryl takes Sean into his office.  Also inside there is Becky, who sees and photographs the schematics of what these five men are hoping to do.  During a tense conversation between Darryl and Sean, the former shows the latter a list on a thumb drive of all the Noble Men nationwide in order to impress on their doubting comrade how broad is their movement.  Once they leave, Becky snatches the thumb drive and makes her escape.  Her route takes her to Darryl’s barn, which is full of guns and ammunition.  However, her chosen instruments are much cruder.  From there, she begins to taunt the others, first luring out Anthony and then killing him in a gruesome manner.  Twig is about to be shown mercy, but then he admits that his son’s name is Adolf.  That does not go well for him.  In the excess of violence, Becky is shot with a tranquilizer dart.  When she comes to, she is inside Darryl’s house.  This is not the only surprise.  The old lady from before is Darryl Sr., Darryl Jr.’s mother and the founder of the Noble Men.  When Becky refuses to reveal where she hid the thumb drive, the Darryls threaten to torture Diego.  Becky promises to talk, but when she is certain that her dog is safely back in its crate, she slips her bonds takes them both down.  A day later, she is being interviewed by Agent Montana (Kate Siegel) of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).  Given everything that Becky has done, she is offered the rare opportunity for someone of her age to work for the government.  The final scene is of her blowing up DJ with a bazooka.

With such moments as a teenager blowing up someone with a bazooka at the end of The Wrath of Becky, I think it is safe to say that Becky is a psychopath.  At the same time, I am not sure this is what is intended.  I was unaware that this is the second in a series, so I will have to go back and watch the first.  I get the impression that her character is supposed to build on what happened before, as well as the more tender moments shared with Elena.  Still, there are the intrusive thoughts Becky has as she imagines killing people in gory ways.  This happens a few times, including while working at the diner as I mentioned in the previous paragraph.  An intrusive thought can be defined as any stray thing that pops into your mind, but are usually classified as unwelcome images or impulses.  The Catholic Church acknowledges that these afflict everyone, and thus does not classify them as sinful.  After all, who among us has not conjured some kind of sinful fantasy?  Our brain does this for a number of reasons, mainly related to stress or changes in our environment.  They are not a problem unless we feed them.  To put this in Catholic terms, what can be a passing moment in our heads can turn into an idol that takes the place of God.  It gets worse when we obey those idols, letting them take hold and guide our actions.  Unfortunately, this appears to be what Becky does.  She is certainly under stress, having lost her family and being on the run from the foster care system.  Further, she feels no compunction to ignore them.  This is part of the reason it is difficult for me to root for her.  I applaud her stance against White Nationalism, but God would desire a different tactic.

I speak so boldly about God in talking about The Wrath of Becky because there is a scene where the Noble Men cast their mission as doing God’s work.  That is terrible theology and not in keeping with Scripture.  Still, you can simply read this review instead of watching the movie for such reminders.