Summary
A mother of three hires a night nanny to help with her newborn.
My Thoughts
This is a movie that I was excited about, despite its premise not being something that really relates to me. This is a film about the sacrifices mothers make for their families. I don’t have children, and honestly, not many of my close friends have young children either; this is an area of life I’ve yet to head into. However, this film had so much to say about the craziness that goes on during early parenthood and it says it so well, that I couldn’t help but be swept up in the story. I’ve generally enjoyed Diablo Cody’s unusual writing style (“Juno”, “Young Adult”), and I believe she and Jason Reitman (directed “Juno” and “Young Adult”) make a great team. On top of that, I was excited to see Charlize join that team once more, because her performance in “Young Adult” was, in my opinion, truly underrated. I wasn't at all disappointed. I walked away from this movie thinking that it was my favorite Jason Reitman film since “Up In The Air” (2009).
(SOME SPOILERS AHEAD)
Marlo (Charlize Theron, “Mad Max: Fury Road”) is pregnant with her third child when the film starts. Her other children, Sarah (Lia Frankland) and Jonah (Asher Miles Fallica), take up a lot of her time already, and while Marlo is obviously a very caring mother, it’s also obvious that the stress is starting to fray her edges. Jonah is a “quirky” child, as all of his teachers constantly remind her. He has some form of autism, and requires things be certain ways so that he doesn’t have tantrums. Marlo does her best to accommodate Jonah, even when it means being perpetually late to meetings, brushing his skin with a sort of soft brush nightly, or standing outside the bathroom to reassure him the flushing sound can’t hurt him. She does her best to keep things interesting with her husband, Drew (Ron Livingston, “The Conjuring”), but he works a lot and both of them are tired and used to the monotony of their daily routines. One night over dinner, Marlo’s brother, Craig (Mark Duplass, “Safety Not Guranteed”), a successful businessman with a fair amount of money, offers to pay for a night nanny when the new baby comes so that Marlo can get some sleep and stay healthy. It’s implied, but never said explicitly, that after Jonah’s pregnancy, Marlo had a little difficulty with postpartum depression. At first, Marlo refuses Craig’s offer, but after the baby comes, Marlo finds herself getting less sleep and becoming more harried, and eventually she caves and calls the nanny. Tully (Mackenzie Davis, “The Martian”), a young, beautiful and effervescent woman shows up to nanny, and slowly she and Marlo begin to bond.
(SPOILERS END)
The best thing about this movie is easily Charlize Theron’s performance. She’s vulnerable and compelling and she’s utterly unrecognizable from the last movie I saw her in (“Gringo”). I read that she gained fifty pounds for this role and it took her a year and a half to shed it again; that’s commitment right there. The most impressive parts of her performance, however, weren’t in the physical transformation, but in the chemistry she had with the children and Ron Livingston. The scenes with Jonah, her autistic child, were heart wrenching and beautiful; you really felt the connection between those two characters. Charlize has a way of showing you Jonah through her eyes: you care for the kid and, just like her, you want him to succeed, despite the fact that sometimes she wants to just scream at him to settle down. This film emphasizes the difficulty and the thanklessness of motherhood, and the incredible balancing act that mothers perform, trying to find time for children, husbands, housework, and themselves. It’s a magic trick, and Charlize’s portrayal of Marlo is more bewitching than any trick you’ve seen. As I came out of this movie, I said that Charlize’s performance here was the best I’ve seen thus far this year. I would not be surprised if we see her name come up during Oscar season.
The writing is another great thing in this script. Though the script itself is relatively simple, and the movie isn’t incredibly long, the character dynamics are pretty complicated. What’s even better is that the relationships are incredibly realistic; characters have reasons for behaving the way that they do, and they change in believable ways. Diablo Cody’s writing, which is known for being rather snarky and humorous, still has that bite to it, but she’s toned back on the over-the-top bizarre lines that made movies like “Juno” so memorable. There are still plenty of great lines in this film, but what makes it work is the depth of everyone involved. It’s a simple story, with a relatively predictable plot, but it still finds a way to be compelling and heartwarming.
Verdict
I really enjoyed this film, and I honestly think that most people will get a lot out of it. This is an honest look at the difficulties of motherhood, and it reminds us of how huge that job that really is, how thankless it can be, and how much of a superhero moms really are. This film has a lot to say , and it says it in a unique and fun way, plus, Charlize Theron absolutely knocks it out of the park. This film is absolutely worth checking out if you get a chance, and it’s one that I wouldn’t be surprised generates some buzz around awards season.
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