writer | Step into film

Although this wasn’t a biopic that I would rush to go and see, Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2019) is a pleasant mix of seriousness and comedy all shaken up with a twist of crime – not a bad cocktail and certainly not boring either.

Melissa McCarthy (Bridesmaids, 2011) was a good choice to play the role of writer Lee Israel and it was refreshing to see her in a more serious role and less so as the butt of jokes, because this woman can act! She is certainly not just a comedienne, but so much more.

The film allows you as the viewer to make your own mind up as to whether Lee Israel was a villain or not. Some may say she was a resourceful woman of great character, a survivor. Others may say she was merely a failed writer and a crook, and not to be trusted. I would say she’s somewhere in the middle. Misunderstood? Yes. Talented? Yes. Wise? No. Blameless? No.

If I’m honest, I’m not sure I would have picked this particular author’s life for a biographical film. I have no doubt that Lee Israel’s memoir Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2008) is a lot better read than it is broadcast onto the big screen. Her story, although harrowing at times, for me, just doesn’t have enough meat on the bones to make it a talked about memoir for years to come. Benjamin Lee from The Guardian sums it up nicely: ‘…at times it does work better as a concentrated character study, but it’s such a joy to spend this time with McCarthy, drunkenly scheming and grumbling, that it’s hard to complain.’

In short, Melissa McCarthy doesn’t let you down.