Michael Morris’s directorial debut seemed poised to follow the path of many indie films that fly under the radar. After a festival and a small theatrical release in the United States, to leslie it should have resided in the murky depths of the streaming service’s algorithms. But instead, this elegiac working-class drama will likely be remembered for Andrea Riseborough’s popular surprise Oscar campaign, now an obscure Best Actress nominee. Apparently everyone in the A-lister phone book supports her: Cate Blanchett said hello, Edward Norton wrote an entire Twitter feeds on her “physically harrowing” performance and, finally, Kate Winslet called Riseborough’s turn “the best female performance on screen I’ve ever seen”. High praise indeed.
Whether or not you agree with Winslet’s assessment, Riseborough, no stranger to the rich and chameleon-like work of her career, gives an outstanding and complex performance as a prickly recovering alcoholic. Testing the family’s patience as she couch-surfs and smuggles cans of beer, her Leslie swings between rage and devastation with the unpredictability of someone she can’t control but really wants.
As touching as it is, to leslie it feels like something out of a grueling roster of tearful addiction dramas that turn agony into awful spectacle. Morris and screenwriter Ryan Binaco turn all of Leslie’s pain into easy empathy as she endures the humiliation of customers at her favorite place, plus a vomit. “Would you like people to stand there and watch you suffer? asks Leslie’s son as he resists her offer to take him to the zoo. “They do,” he replies, without a shred of self-consciousness.
Quietly reflecting on the repairable wounds addiction inflicts, to leslie it does not intend to give more extensive lectures on these topics. Ultimately it is an intimate character study designed specifically as a starring vehicle for a superlative actress who has long awaited proper recognition. And every little independent who (even potentially) reaches the major leagues deserves to be celebrated.
Source: EmpireOnline
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
