REVIEW: TO LESLIE

4/5

Rising Andrea. 

119 Mins. Starring: Andrea Riseborough, Andre Royo, Owen Teague, Stephen Root, James Landry Hebert, Marc Maron & Allison Janney. Director: Michael Morris. In: Theatres. 

It could happen to you like Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda. Your numbers could come up. And 'To Leslie', with a remarkable, revelatory performance from Andrea Riseborough, that's exactly what happened. Loosely based on a true story, wrapped up in a Waylon and Willie country song. But what happens when the opposite of Nas' 'Life's A B####' ("and then you die", my favourite empowering anthem) line, "the buck that bought the bottle could have hit the lotto" comes up? That's what this sobering drama of alcohol addiction that hit The Academy like 'Aftersun' exposes, all the way down to the bottom of the bottle. Circling the drain of desperate and dark times, and the manipulated measures that chases this. Nosedived in nuance with no kid gloves in a time of award bait for safe and secure movie making bank, every other movie is in for a rude awakening. Dear Academy. You asked for this Michael Morris movie's hustle. 'Leslie' gave you her heart. 

Just the ticket. Many Hall of Fame Oscar winners had the chestnut that is this Morris directorial debut on their ballot as a 'Best Picture', wanting to give the actress Academy Award to Riseborough. And now after the sun, as the final prestige picture from Oscar season to find the Far East cinemas of Japan, you can see why. It shows in a stellar performance from a serious actor who has already been a star in the making. Riseborough's rise saw the English actress ('Never Let Me Go', 'Brighton Rock', 'Made In Dagenham') cropping up in Hollywood movies alongside the A's (Tom Cruise in 'Oblivion', Michael Keaton in his Oscar winning 'Birdman (Or The Unexpected Virtue Of Ignorance', 'Nocturnal Animals' with Amy Adams and Jake Gyllenhaal). But this...THIS is the prize money. Even if many are claiming shenanigans for the campaigning. Fans and former co-star alike Kate Winslet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Amy Adams, Charlize Theron, Edward Norton and Jennifer Aniston (this takes the 'Cake', like the 'Friends' star's best and underappreciated performance) all co-signed. Many hosting private screenings to display the talent. But I see nothing wrong with that. Especially as not even Cate Blanchett's 'Tar' was going to take everything, everywhere, all at once from sure thing winner Michelle Yeoh. 

The only injustice I see is the slight given to the rest of this cast that in turn makes this movie an ensemble piece. Especially as if someone wins the lottery in a small town, it affects everybody in hands out reach. 'Brothers and Sisters' we must also give credit to director Michael Morris in a first film that turns out to be a classic tome on the dark side of the American dream, from 'Nebraska' to 'Nomadland' that wakes you up in a cold sweat. Your fears illuminated by the Garden Of Eden attracting sleazy neon that hides a snakebite behind all that apple cider. Forget 'The Lost Daughter' of an Olivia Colman classic, this lost mother squandering more than her savings thinks she's made, but the addiction of alcohol is a disease that takes everything right down to the lint in her pockets. The unforgiving terrain of a motel stop, middling America with boarded up shops, homes and towns doesn't help. It only hurts her reputation even more. Sliding a glass across the counter like a folded napkin deal from the devil. 

The bruised and bloodshot soul of Andrea Riseborough's raw and ravaged central character is surely the best thing about this picture in a physical and psychological powerhouse performance. But 'To Leslie' signs and seals dedication to other names, mind you. Even without the envelope. Evoking just what she's lost in a young son who seems decades older than a teenager on the turn to twenty (and that's the point), Owen Teague is in a league of his own. The 'Black Mirror' episodic star maturing before our eyes from the 'It' bully to make 'The Stand' of his career. Familiar faces Andre Royo ('The Wire' and Terrence Howard's right-hand man in 'Empire') and an unrecognizable Stephen Root (a Cohen's, 'King Of The Hill' and 'Dodgeball' favourite) make welcome appearances. Whilst '1883' 'Yellowstone' prequel star James Landry Hebert and chameleonic powerhouse Allison Janney (from 'The West Wing' to 'I Tonya') still looking great, look like what would happen if 'Sons Of Anarchy' met 'Shameless'. Yet I would still risk it all for Allison in a heartbeat. 

The real best actor of this piece aside from Andrea is the 'Glow' of comedian and 'Joker' cameo star beside De Niro, Marc Maron. Also on executive production duty the moment Marc enters this movie in the middle he elevates it all with genuine and incorruptible kindness. Based on his own story chasing the bottle and demons of drink that fractures families away. The podcaster, musician and all-round stand-up guy can do it all. And his performance here is everything. Especially in his charming and compelling, albeit crippling chemistry, for better or worse, with Riseborough's Leslie. We have no idea why he didn't garner a nomination. But now, almost half a year later, we now know why so many actors went to bat for Andrea. 

Her formidable tour de force performance is one of the ages in a definitive drama that's movies like they used to make them before it all became paint by numbers award fodder campaigning of a different kind. Far from a cautionary tale, 'To Leslie' writes to all those suffering any addiction with unflinching realism to go along with the sympathy and solidarity we could all use in a world that looks to hide away from those who need help like a hungover head under a pillow. It's time we really woke up to this idea that instead of another drink, maybe someone just needs another chance. Pull up a chair instead of a stool and listen to Leslie's story. And then she, he, you and me can win in a whole new way that's far much richer than all that glitters in gold or nectar. TIM DAVID HARVEY. 

Further Filming: 'The Lost Daughter', 'Nebraska', 'Nomadland'.