MAY DECEMBER - MIFF 2023

 

As per the MIFF guide: “At 36, Gracie caused a worldwide furore and landed herself behind bars after her predatory sexual relationship with a 13-year-old boy was made public. Some 20 years later, with Gracie now married to him with children of their own, the complexities resurface when actor Elizabeth arrives in their hometown of Savannah, Georgia, ahead of playing her in an upcoming biopic. But Elizabeth’s stripping of her subject’s layers triggers a crossing of boundaries – from every which way.”

I was late in discovering the cinema of Todd Haynes but once I finally came across his work, it didn't take me long to recognise his genius, nor to the fact that I am on the same cinematic wavelength of this great director. His films just speak to me, and now each time a new film from Todd Haynes is released, it is something of an event. “May December” is his latest, and it may come as no surprise that it was my second most anticipated film at MIFF after Christian Petzold's “Afire”. Unlike the Petzold film which was my first film screened at MIFF this year, I had to wait until the second last day of the festival to see “May December”, but unsurprisingly, it was definitely worth the wait. I loved this film, and from the reaction of the audience I saw it with, it certainly seemed like a crowd favourite too.

While it is never stated in the film as such, the story of “May December” is based on the real-life case of Mary Kay Letourneau, who was a school teacher that was sent to prison for her part in the “romance” between her and a twelve year old boy, in Washington. Without going into too many details, the interesting thing about this case is that Letourneau, while in prison (or waiting to be imprisoned), gave birth to two children fathered by this boy. Further more, once Letourneau was released from jail after doing her time, Letourneau and Vili Fualaau (the boy, who now, was over the age of twenty) ended up marrying each other, living together as husband and wife. Such a relationship fascinated America because it questioned whether or not Letourneau was in the wrong if it was true love all along, but at the same time, she was 22 years Fualaau's senior at the time of the “assault / romance” so the power dynamics clearly were in favour of Letourneau, with Fualaau clearly not being of a mature age to be making such decisions on his life. Anyway, none of that is part of “May December” except in the background, as Haynes briefly addresses the scandal of his characters via a quick montage of newspaper articles and headlines detailing all of this, so we understand why a Hollywood actress would want to take the time to meet these people and then play them onscreen. As you can tell, all of this is very heavy stuff, so you would think that it would ultimately force Todd Haynes' film to be a serious drama to examine all of this, but the most surprising aspect of “May December”, and the biggest reason for why it is so great, is the gutsy, (and very deliberate) campy tone that Haynes gives to his film. I was not expecting “May December” to be a funny film at all, and yet at times it is hilarious!

One of the keys to getting this very hard to capture tone just right, comes down to the use of the excellent over-the-top score by Marcelo Zarvos, which is actually re-purposed music from Joseph Losey's 1971 film, “The Go-Between”. The way Todd Haynes first introduces this music into his film is so funny due to how dramatic it comes across, especially as it follows this simple line of dialogue: “We may not have enough hot-dogs”. My cinema erupted into laughter during this moment, which I'm sure is exactly what Haynes wanted, as he is giving his audience the okay to laugh during the film; do not fear, it is intended that way, even during some of the most uncomfortable moments and scenes.

“May December” is filled with wonderful performances especially from the three lead characters. This is Julianne Moore's fifth time working with Todd Haynes and I always feel like magic is created when these two get together. Whilst I doubt that they could ever top their masterpiece, “Far from Heaven” (a rare five-star film for me), Moore once again creates a complex character with Gracie. She plays her as a woman who still feels she has nothing to apologise for, that she has done nothing wrong, nor is she embarrassed or ashamed of it, and yet we can see through interactions with both Joe and her own kids, just how manipulative she can be through her words and tone. It is interesting watching the power dynamics between her and Joe even now, as Gracie still stands over him like he is a little kid even though he is now a fully grown adult and much bigger in stature than her. Gracie is definitely the dominant party in this marriage and gets angry when she doesn't get her way, belittling Joe in the process. She also projects the image of a woman who is popular and successful in her community, but this image is slowly eroded the more Elizabeth questions Gracie and her friends for her research in the role. Julianne Moore plays Gracie with a lisp, which is something I never like, because it usually feels so forced, but funnily enough, Moore has done it so subtlety here, that I didn't notice it until late in the film when Elizabeth herself is practising Gracie's speech patterns.

Speaking of Elizabeth, “May December” is Natalie Portman's film, hands down. Granted, she has the most “showy” role in the film, but she does it so, so well. When she first enters Gracie's house to meet the family, she comes across as really down to earth and friendly, but as she asks more and more personal questions, particularly to Joe involving the psychological aspects of what happened, you can feel she isn't as genuine as she wants to come across. She keeps saying that she only wants to be true to the story, but her questions are loaded to the point that it feels like Elizabeth has already come to town with her own opinion on Gracie's story, so instead of actually listening to what both Gracie and Joe are saying, she keeps trying to steer the conversations towards the more controversial or salacious material of their story. The more and more Elizabeth tries to embody Gracie and get under her skin to understand her fully, the creepier Portman's performance gets, where by the end she goes to quite a dark and controversial place, all under the guise of capturing the “truth”. The very final scene of the film is particularly creepy as we finally realise that through her research, Elizabeth may have gone way too far in her attempts to get to that truth, so far that she herself is in danger of becoming a predator. It is a wonderful performance from Portman, and so much deeper and complex than you ever think it is going to be when we first meet her. She has a standout monologue late in the movie, when she portrays Gracie (lisp and all) reading out one of her (real) letters to Joe. I also really liked the progression in her physical acting as she mimics Gracie's actions and movements, and gets closer to perfecting them the more they are together. Wardrobe helps amazingly in this too, and the scene at the twin's graduation ceremony, where Gracie and Elizabeth meet and are almost indistinguishable (with echoes of Bergman's “Persona”) is just masterful.

The other performance of note in “May December” is that of Charles Melton, who plays Joe. I mentioned above how tricky the tone of this film was, particularly in regards to the campy comedy to it, as it could come across as though Haynes is treating the rape/sexual assault of a teenage boy in a trivial manner. I am happy to report that the character of Joe, and his ordeal, is never treated in this fashion. In fact, Melton's performance as Joe is the most grounded and realistic of all the characters in the film, mainly because he seems to be the only one truly looking inside of himself, and trying to come to terms with exactly what happened to him and what he has lost because of it. He realises that maybe what they are telling the world, that they are happy and in love, isn't really the case, and he has in fact been hurt by the past that he has buried so deep within. Joe is the most genuine character within the film, and he has the most gentle and loving relationship with his children. There is an amazing scene on a rooftop, where Joe and his son share a joint. Joe explains he has never tried it before, which shocks his son, as Joe begins to understand just how much of his childhood he lost or was taken from him, due to needing to grow up so quick. Unfortunately, Joe is also the character who is manipulated the most, with even Elizabeth bending his will, all in the name of her research.

“May December” is the first Todd Haynes film not to be shot by his regular cinematographer Edward Lachman since “Velvet Goldmine” in 1998, and to be honest, I actually missed his contribution to the film. That is not to say that “May December” is not an attractive looking film, but it does look different than the norm for a Haynes picture. Unfortunately, Lachman was away shooting Pablo Larrain's new film “El Conde” in Chile, so Haynes turned to his friend Kelly Reichardt's cinematographer Christopher Blauvelt to fill in, and he does a nice job. The film is brightly lit, although as the story evolves, shadows begin to deepen and darkness creeps in more. At times, he gives the movie a gaudy soap opera feel, but this is no doubt deliberate as it goes well with the story itself.

Overall, I adored “May December”, and I got amusement out of a patron describing the film to another as “the best and most Todd Haynes picture yet”. While I wouldn't go that far, I knew exactly what she meant, as the film feels like it could have only been made by this director. He is mining material and themes similar to that he has done before, but it never feels derivative of anything else he has made. It is a fantastically complex film, told in a deliberately campy style, filled to the brim with great performances. As much as I loved the film, I think film festivals are the perfect place for people to watch a Todd Haynes film, and I do worry how “May December” will be received outside of the festival circuit. I really hope it is able to find its audience because it is another entertaining and engaging film from this super talented director.

4 Stars.