It’s hard to know what to say about this artful, meticulous, melodrama by Todd Haynes.

On the surface, it’s the story of a 60 something woman Gracie (Julianne Moore), who is infamous for her ‘affair’ with a 12-year-old, Joe (Charles Melton), who she later married. An actor, Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) is going to portray her in a TV movie 24 years later and inserts herself into Gracie’s milquetoast suburban life to prepare for the role.

The issues are immediately obvious as the reality of what happened to Joe goes unspoken or ignored, particularly by Gracie. Elizabeth operates as a de facto audience member, coming in without previous connection to dispassionately observe.

Except this isn’t it what she does. Haynes signals early on that this is a melodrama, albeit one where the characters are playing it straight. It’s an indication that we are not seeing truth but a narrative being manipulated. And perhaps that we are no different from all those others within the story, fascinated by the salacious details.

Casting is excellent with Moore and Portman showing their brittleness. Gracie is a monster, but Moore shows how she might manifest in many mothers. It’s not really about paedophilia ron more accurately hebephilia) as some have said but about the damage that’s caused through coercive control and narcissism. And Gracie is not the only one guilty of that.

It’s worth pondering on Joe, and how he is a victim, what the experience has done to his life. It’s a subtle film in many ways, despite the melodrama, and I suspect it takes a swipe at people like us, who read the magazines and watch the TV movies.

Director: Todd Haynes
Origin: USA (2023)
Language: English
Genre: Comedy , Drama

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