It takes a delicate and bold hand to delve into a circumstance as tricky as a student-teacher relationship and given that the last major Hollywood film made that touched on that idea was “That’s My Boy,” it’s not exactly one most want to try their hand at. Todd Haynes (“Velvet Goldmine,” “Carol”) is not your average director, and as one who’s delved into plenty of melodrama and camp elements, he and writers Sam Burch and Alex Mechanik dive headfirst into this sticky situation that pokes at multiple aspects of the story, past and present.
The film follows actress Elizabeth, played by Natalie Portman (“Léon: The Professional,” “Black Swan”), who travels to Savannah, Georgia to shadow Gracie, played by Julianne Moore (“Nine Months,” “Magnolia”), after being cast to play her in a film. based around Gracie sleeping with her at the time thirteen-year-old student Joe, played as an adult by Charles Melton (“The Sun is Also a Star,” “Heart of Champions”), whom she then married and has been living happily with for the past twenty-three years. Elizabeth’s arrival throws their relationship and lives into chaos and has them and herself reevaluating many elements of their lives.
As with most of Haynes’ previous films, there’s a heavy focus on domestic life and melodrama in the events of the film. It doesn’t feel overblown, but just slightly exaggerated in the way that real life often is. Portman and Moore ride this line beautifully, straddling the differences between the two women. It is fascinating to watch a person studying another so they can be that person, and the dynamic this adds to their interactions is expertly displayed.
But Melton is the runaway star here. His interplay between Moore and Portman, alone with them and with others, is nothing short of phenomenal, and the pain he manages to convey in numerous different situations is increasingly fascinating. The film is at its core really a character study of him and how his life is still controlled and centered around this moment from his childhood, and to watch Melton shape an entire performance around that idea is nothing short of astonishing.
The dynamic between the film’s quaint and quiet town and its bombastic score by Marcelo Zarvos (“Hollywoodland,” “Dark Water”) and voyeuristic cinematography from Christopher Blauvelt (“mid90s,” “Showing Up”) work to set the two worlds apart. Elizabeth’s world of details and closely examined nitpicking is contrasted using these elements to not only show the difference between them, but also in how despite those differences, they’re still all examining Joe to the same extent.
It’s a fascinating film on how it works to examine the ay we process stories and information like this, but it does take somewhat of a disappointing easy way out by the end of things. There is something to be said for tying in the film’s own perspective and results with the somewhat “easy way out” ending itself, but that doesn’t take away from its somewhat disappointing end result.
“May December” is a great showcase for its two main leads, an even greater showcase for Charles Melton, and has a lot to say about its subject material with both its production and text of the film itself. Given the examinations it makes, it does mean that the end result leaves a bit to be desired, but it doesn’t mean it isn’t a fun, melodramatic, well-acted trip to get there. 4/5
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