Can You Ever Forgive Me?

Score:  A

Directed by Marielle Heller
Starring Melissa McCarthy, Richard E. Grant
Running time: 107 minutes
Rated R

Long Story Short:  Melissa McCarthy takes a detour in this stranger than fiction biopic about an author turned literary forger.  Teamed with Richard E. Grant, McCarthy is spectacular as the down in the dumps lead, and this perfect coupling along with the bizarre story generate both dark humor and unique character development.  Add in a bevy of thoughtful themes and ideas, and this is a must-see.


Lee Israel's (McCarthy) problems in the early 1990s began with a bad case of writer's block.  A biographer and magazine staff writer, Israel alienates her agent with increasingly desperate ideas and gets herself fired for behavior.  Alone with her cat, Israel resorts to selling one of her prized possessions, a personal letter from Katharine Hepburn, to pay her rent and vet bills.  Helping to keep her going, too, is a new acquaintance named Jack (Grant), met at a bar, who delights in mischievous fun and commiserating on their bad luck.  Still hanging on by a thread, Israel soon catches on to an idea that will allow her to put her talents back to use - and money in her wallet.  The only catch is that it's illegal.  Still, spurred on by professional slights and egged on by Jack, Israel decides to take the plunge that will define her legacy - for better or worse.

Can You Ever Forgive Me? has a very small cast, but the two leads are so good that it's better that way.  Melissa McCarthy is the perfect choice as Lee Israel.  Best known, of course, for her various hilarious comic roles, she is also an underrated actor, and she inhabits the flawed, real-life author very well.  Most distinctive is her pessimistic outlook, at times taciturn and glowering and at others bursting with bitter yet sharp, clear-headed insults.  McCarthy somehow makes this miserable creature sympathetic, though (she's had practice in other roles like Bridesmaids and The Heat).  Her affection for her cat is sweet and genuine, and her humanity seeps through in her combative yet respectful friendship with Jack.  She portrays Lee as a woman who is driven yet doesn't even realize it, someone full of glaring flaws yet persistent inner strength.  Richard E. Grant is also great as the drifter Jack, who appropriately comes in and out of focus through the film.  He is almost the opposite of Lee in some ways: he is overtly charming, pleasant and energetic, yet privately guarded and even afraid of success.  While he encourages Lee to come out of her shell and enjoy herself, she provides a model for him of (relative) stability.  Grant gooses the film with his smile and personality just enough to balance Lee's dour disposition.  All other roles are minuscule in comparison, though Dolly Wells is another nice presence as a book seller who works with Lee.

Can You Ever Forgive Me? is a modest little biopic in some respects, yet with its tremendous performances, script, interesting story and thoughtful themes, it is also a great one.  The central premise is Lee Israel's criminal forgery of personal letters from literary greats.  It provides a darkly humorous as well as fascinating backbone as the main action, but the film develops all the surrounding elements so well, too.  The film begins with Lee at rock bottom, with her humiliating professional failures and deteriorating living conditions, effectively establishing the character and her circumstances.  It's this gut-punch of a start that gives such great perspective on Lee's choices in getting more and more involved in her forgeries.  Especially as you see the haughtiness of the collectors - and their own lack of scruples - it becomes easier to root for her.  Equal attention is given to developing Lee and her relationships.  Jack, as mentioned above, is the perfect companion for her, not only in helping her cope with her darkest days but also in illuminating her character by contrast with his own.  We're also shown both Lee's past relationships - with her agent, a past girlfriend - and how they have soured her outlook, as well as potential new ones, like with Anna the book seller, and their fits and starts.  By the end, we have an impressively complete picture of this woman.

The film goes beyond even these elements, in illustrating themes and asking questions on a variety of professional and personal topics.  Authenticity and commercial success/fame at times go together - but what about when they don't?  Each has its own rewards, but without the other, also considerable problems.  Lee is not a very likable person, which the film makes clear is due to a combination of her own poor choices as well as to the actions taken by those close to her.  We all fall somewhere on that spectrum - can we be honest and strong enough to see that in ourselves and others?  Lee hasn't answered these questions by the end, let alone become a perfectly happy or (legitimately) successful writer.  But she, like the rest of us, is a work in progress.

***

Can You Ever Forgive Me? is a great success, thanks to a nice confluence of story, performances and more.  The premise is a great hook, but it still allows for a very grounded film to be made around it, and the writers and filmmakers took full advantage of that combination.  McCarthy and Grant are phenomenal leads, and while there are other important roles here and there, the film is able to focus its attention on the pair.  The film's ambitions may seem modest at first, but the themes derived organically from the plot and characterization are deep, interesting, as well as uncommon.  This is not  necessarily a good choice if you need a pick me up, or something light and cheerful, but you should still see it some time.  Highly recommended for all.




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