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Wild Nights with Emily

Country: united_states

Year: 2019

Running time: 84

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5176580/reference

Chris says: “Since it plays like a clunky SNL sketch at times, I wasn’t expecting to like this odd little film in the end, but I kinda did. I only appreciated what it was attempting once I realized Mabel Todd’s ongoing speech was *supposed* to be clunky. Although I love Molly Shannon, I’m not sure she was the best choice for Dickinson (Cynthia Nixon in A QUIET PASSION is still definitive), but kudos to director Madeleine Olnek for portraying her as something other than a self-serious spinster. 3 cats

Michael says: “I went to see this film because it was the opening night film at the Provincetown International Film Festival. I knew Molly Shannon was in it, and I knew it was a biopic about Emily Dickinson. What a delightful surprise WILD NIGHTS WITH EMILY turned out to be! Apparently decades of scholarship about the poet was based on mistruths, and only in the past few decades has the truth started to be uncovered. Apparently Emily carried on a lifelong love affair with her sister-in-law who lived next door. Her brother’s deceptive mistress is the one who published her work posthumously, and created the myth that Dickinson was a recluse who didn’t want her work published until after her death. She invented this myth to save face because she never actually met Dickinson in person because the author didn’t want to meet her brother’s mistress!

“Filmmaker Madelene Olnek has created a film worthy of any period piece, costumes, mannerisms, sets… but throws in a hilarious, dry humor that Ms. Shannon carries of brilliantly, illuminating a life that was probably much more accurate than the recluse fiction that scholars have believed for decades. Olnek’s frequent collaborators, actors Susan Ziegler and Jackie Monahan are pitch perfect as Susan (Dickinson’s sister-in-law) and Lavinia (Dickinson’s sister) respectively. Ziegler matches Shannon with the bawdy, silliness that elevates this film to dizzying heights, and Monahan is hysterical in nearly every scene in which she appear. I can’t stop talking about a scenes where Dickinson’s brother asks Lavinia to help him set up an in person meeting between Mabel (his mistress) and Emily.
“This delightful surprise kicked off the festival so well, and the post-film Q&A where the director explained the history of Dickinson scholarship was fascinating. Hope you catch this when it gets released! 4 cats
Wild Nights with Emily

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