Thelma & Louise is an unpredictable, snappy, and admiring adventure through primarily Midwestern and Western USA. It follows two best friends, unhappy housewife Thelma Dickinson (German Davis) and diner waitress Louise Sawyer (Susan Sarandon), as they embark on a road trip to a cabin away from their restrictive Arkansas lives. What’s initially an innocent getaway for two best friends jettisons into an interstate chase from the law; a man’s near-raping of Thelma outside a bar leaves him shot by Louise, and the pair on the run. Together, they must survive and rediscover/reclaim themselves, analyzing their relationships, pasts, actions, wants, and how they oppose male-dominated America’s norms. It’s easier to realize what you want and how to get it when mesmerizing cliffsides, colorful canyons, and drink-filled jam sessions surround you.

Thelma & Louise is not just a thrilling road trip adventure, but a thought-provoking exploration of freedom and gender inequality. The film delves into the unique struggles of its two protagonists, Louise and Thelma, who are each dealing with the symptoms of a male-dominated society. Louise is underpaid for grueling work as a waitress and constricted by a closed-off nature developed after an unspoken rape incident in Texas years prior; Thelma, unhappy anyway with housewife life, is a forced shut-in thanks to her controlling, verbally abusive, self-proclaimed “infantile” husband, Darryl Dickinson (Christopher McDonald). They find in each other what they can’t from the world and all the men they’ve met: safety and compassion. Even with a sympathetic cop in Detective Hal Slocumb (Harvey Keitel), a learned love of the road and its rolling landscapes helps greatly.

Coming in hot from a murder case, the pair’s compassionate firmness allows each one to blossom and heal. Susan Sarandon as Louise delivers a performance that perfectly captures the “tough love, tough life” expression of someone who’s known nothing other than surviving. She’s cold, but her heart’s in the right place. Geena Davis as Thelma engulfs with her initially subtle and restrained charm that morphs into an emboldened, free-spirited person. Separately, they’re the results of different symptoms of the same problem – male primitivity and piggishness – but together, they can resist and learn. “Something’s, like, crossed over in me and I can’t go back. I mean, I just couldn’t live,” Thelma professes to a shaken Louise right before entering a military high-speed chase. They grow more confident with each passing crime either done to or by them – delivering rocking road trip fun with plenty of humanity and sin to chew on.

While Thelma & Louise can feel slightly disjointed on rare occasions, its titular kinetic duo, human themes, and balanced scope between action, road trip camp, morosity, and playfulness make it a highly satiating summer flick. It ensures you tread its mileage and your time efficiently.

Screens in 35 mm Sunday, 8/18, 7:00 pm @ Somerville Theatre
Part of the IFFBoston’s repertory series: Hot Summer Nights