By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Director: Todd Haynes
Starring: Andrea Frankle | Charles Melton | Chris Tenzis | Cory Michael Smith | Julianne Moore | Natalie Portman
Year: 2023
Running time: 117
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt13651794/reference/
Chris says: I suppose Todd Haynes’ latest does for Lifetime TV movies what his 2002 film FAR FROM HEAVEN did for Douglas Sirk, recreating an aesthetic and carefully tweaking it for postmodern consumption, but it’s also so much more. It concerns what occurs when famous actress Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) visits Gracie (Julianne Moore) and her family in Savannah in order to study her in preparation for playing her in a movie based on her scandalous relationship with Joe (Charles Melton), whom she met when she was 36 and he was 13.
“Set twenty-plus years into this relationship, MAY DECEMBER is loosely inspired by the real-life story of teacher Mary Kay Letourneau. By introducing the character of Elizabeth, however, it becomes a study of what it means to perform or play a role, the self-awareness (or lack thereof) in doing so convincingly and the long-term implications of surrendering to one’s own delusions. Samy Burch’s screenplay is impressive for a feature debut, but arguably only Todd Haynes could pull off such a tricky balancing act, effortlessly blending camp and melodrama until they seem indistinguishable from one another. His most psychologically complex film since
CAROL (if not SAFE) and if
that’s not enough, Moore has a line of dialogue five minutes in as ridiculous, hilarious and thus iconic as anything she’s ever been given.
5 cats“
Tom M. responds: “Such great performances and raises the Q, do the amoral weavings of Ms Berry exceed those of Mary Kay? Cory Michael Smith is such a pistol.”
Chris responds: “He’s only in two or three scenes, but Cory Michael Smith could also be a contender for Breakthrough performance.”
