May December is one of those films that sneaks up on you; right after watching it, I felt like I liked it, but didn't really understand the hype. Only after sitting with the film, considering what it's saying and what it's exploring, did I truly appreciate how special this movie is.
Todd Haynes has crafted my favourite type of movie: a simple story that's about a lot. May December follows Elizabeth (Portman) an actress playing tabloid superstar Gracie Atherton (Moore) in a movie (based off the real life teacher-turned-pedophile Mary Kay Letourneau - look her up, you know who she is) and studying her for the role. In doing so, Elizabeth begins learning more about the family her and Joe (Charles Melton) created (Joe is very clearly based off of Villi Fulaau, the child Letorneau "fell in love with" and eventually started a family with - she was pregnant in prison with his child, really, look this up if you aren't aware)
Through this simple premise, May December becomes a meditation on abuse, exploitation, and trauma buoyed my fantastic performances, shots dripping in symbolism, and purposefully campy style reminiscent of schlocky TV true crime movies (complete with that iconic, bizarre but entirely appropriate piano number that really makes the movie).
This film presents Joe and Gracie as a happily married couple, with three beautiful children, financial success, and good relations with the rest of the community. You're tempted to think that even if the *way* Gracie and Joe met was fundamentally wrong, does the family and home that came from that relationship justify it? The film doesn't force feed an answer and doesn't go for "moral slam dunks," but it does present abuse as something you can't really get over without addressing.
A lot of these themes are presented by Joe played by Charles Melton of Riverdale and 13 Reasons Why fame. To say his performance is incredible would be an understatement, because it's amazing how in a film where he stars opposite Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, he's the standout performance. (Those women are fantastic by the way, especially Julianne Moore) His body language, tempo of speaking, and jittery screen presence really communicate the essence of his character. Joe is outwardly successful and happy, but there's clearly something off about him. He seems like a child stuck in a man's body and its through him do we see the consequences of a fundamentally unjust relationship on the victimized. His performance and this character are haunting and powerful.
To their credit, Moore and Portman paint portraits of what abuse and abusers can really look like, far from the notions we typically have of them. Moore is soft spoken, gentle, and appears loving, but her manipulative and self-serving ways are never far from the surface. It's a beautifully nuanced and realistic performance.
Portman is excellent here as well and gives one of the best performances of her career. When she enters the film, the audience sees her as a fundamentally "good" and "normal" person. However, the film slowly reveals whom she really is, and it's not pretty. Portman to me represents the media; it can do and be good, but more often than not, is self-interested and exploitative, eating up and spitting out people because it sort of has to. Her interaction with Joe towards the end (and really, the whole final act of the film) is absolutely brilliant.
I could gush on and on about this movie; the soft cinematography, the gentle pacing, the incredible symbolism. It almost lulls you into complacency and comfort, only to reveal the ugliness within. In that sense, it's probably one of the best films about abuse and trauma I've ever seen, because it reminds us that monsters don't have to actually look, act, or feel a certain way. And trauma is something that time can't always heal by itself.
Todd Haynes has crafted my favourite type of movie: a simple story that's about a lot. May December follows Elizabeth (Portman) an actress playing tabloid superstar Gracie Atherton (Moore) in a movie (based off the real life teacher-turned-pedophile Mary Kay Letourneau - look her up, you know who she is) and studying her for the role. In doing so, Elizabeth begins learning more about the family her and Joe (Charles Melton) created (Joe is very clearly based off of Villi Fulaau, the child Letorneau "fell in love with" and eventually started a family with - she was pregnant in prison with his child, really, look this up if you aren't aware)
Through this simple premise, May December becomes a meditation on abuse, exploitation, and trauma buoyed my fantastic performances, shots dripping in symbolism, and purposefully campy style reminiscent of schlocky TV true crime movies (complete with that iconic, bizarre but entirely appropriate piano number that really makes the movie).
This film presents Joe and Gracie as a happily married couple, with three beautiful children, financial success, and good relations with the rest of the community. You're tempted to think that even if the *way* Gracie and Joe met was fundamentally wrong, does the family and home that came from that relationship justify it? The film doesn't force feed an answer and doesn't go for "moral slam dunks," but it does present abuse as something you can't really get over without addressing.
A lot of these themes are presented by Joe played by Charles Melton of Riverdale and 13 Reasons Why fame. To say his performance is incredible would be an understatement, because it's amazing how in a film where he stars opposite Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, he's the standout performance. (Those women are fantastic by the way, especially Julianne Moore) His body language, tempo of speaking, and jittery screen presence really communicate the essence of his character. Joe is outwardly successful and happy, but there's clearly something off about him. He seems like a child stuck in a man's body and its through him do we see the consequences of a fundamentally unjust relationship on the victimized. His performance and this character are haunting and powerful.
To their credit, Moore and Portman paint portraits of what abuse and abusers can really look like, far from the notions we typically have of them. Moore is soft spoken, gentle, and appears loving, but her manipulative and self-serving ways are never far from the surface. It's a beautifully nuanced and realistic performance.
Portman is excellent here as well and gives one of the best performances of her career. When she enters the film, the audience sees her as a fundamentally "good" and "normal" person. However, the film slowly reveals whom she really is, and it's not pretty. Portman to me represents the media; it can do and be good, but more often than not, is self-interested and exploitative, eating up and spitting out people because it sort of has to. Her interaction with Joe towards the end (and really, the whole final act of the film) is absolutely brilliant.
I could gush on and on about this movie; the soft cinematography, the gentle pacing, the incredible symbolism. It almost lulls you into complacency and comfort, only to reveal the ugliness within. In that sense, it's probably one of the best films about abuse and trauma I've ever seen, because it reminds us that monsters don't have to actually look, act, or feel a certain way. And trauma is something that time can't always heal by itself.