Colman and Buckley know how to make this material sing, and there are moments when both actors managed to make me squeeze out an authentic tear or two, only to have me enthusiastically giggling a scene or two later.

The range of insults sprinkled in with a healthy dose of f-bombs is truly awe-inspiring. The letters are spicy for the villagers, but for a modern-day audience, they're just delightfully silly.

It’s saved, first by strong performances from Buckley, always effortlessly believable, and Colman, expert at laying bare the clammy soul of easily dismissible women. And second, by the letters themselves...

Wicked Little Letters is ultimately an optimistic feminist movie in that it believes that progress is possible.