By James Murphy
Julianne Moore reunites with acclaimed transgressive film-maker Todd Haynes for the fifth time in May December, where she plays a notorious tabloid sex offender based loosely on the life of Mary Kay Letourneau. Moore’s narcissistic character competes with Natalie Portman’s bio-pic actress in a duel between black swans for the attention and supply of Moore’s now-grown 7th grade lover/victim, Joe Yoo, played in a career making performance by Charles Melton.
Haynes’ May December is a detective story with a twist fused with a coming-of-age drama. It begins with actress Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) arriving in Savannah, Georgia, as she prepares to visit the family home of Gracie and Joe for purpose of determining what makes Gracie tick, so she can authentically play her in an a soon-to-shoot film. The crime- Gracie’s grooming and statutory rape of Joe- has long since passed; Gracie had served her time, then married Joe, and their second and third children (Elizabeth Yu and Gabriel Chung) are on the cusp of graduation from high school. Instead of being a whodunnit, this is a why-did-she-do-it, as Elizabeth systematically speaks with all the interested parties two decades on to try to crack Gracie’s fragile mask.
Glimpses of both Elizabeth and Gracie’s true intentions are offered by Haynes and Samy Burch’s script, and theories are offered, but are never quite resolved. Gracie gaslights and shames her children, offering backhanded compliments and passive aggressive graduation gifts. Elizabeth confides in Gracie about her shame over past mistakes, in a sign that she seeks the freedom that Gracie appears to have found. Amidst this pair of tornados, Charles Melton’s Joe matures like the chrysalis busting butterflies that he raises in his living room. He is the star of the show.
May December is rich with symbolism: the kids’ graduation ceremony and the caterpillar’s metamorphosis representing the transition to adulthood, which acts as backdrop for exploration of when those rights of passage should occur, and whether maturity occurs at the same age for everyone. Elizabeth is an actress playing a role, but are Gracie and Joe doing so too? Does Elizabeth want to play that role in real life. Joe and Gracie meet in a pet store. Is Joe just her pet, or does she really love him. Gracie hunts, too, with a shotgun. Is she just a predator?
Tonally, the film shifts from high camp and squirm in your seat awkwardness to moments that verge on thriller: suspenseful music builds as Gracie opens the fridge in the opening BBQ scene to discover there aren’t enough hot dogs; this represents the walk-on-eggshells environment that a narcissist can create in the household. May December is a skilful and balanced examination of taboo and morality which adds further accomplishment to the resumes of Moore, Portman and Haynes, while marking the beginning of Melton’s likely illustrious career.
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