Films about substance abuse and addiction belong in a genre in and of itself. Most of them follow a pattern that shows the ups and downs of drug and/or alcohol dependence before ending in tragedy or triumph. The formula has been done so often that the only way for such films to truly stand out is if they are grounded in frank emotional honesty and contain characters whose faults are communicated in a painfully and identifiably human manner. Most recent like-minded movies are so fixated on having their say on the addiction crisis in modern America that they fail to offer anything fresh or revelatory on the subject because they seem to forget about the now-countless other films that are more or less just like them.
Luckily, To Leslie is a film that tackles alcoholism with grit, truthfulness, and integrity. Yes, it’s a variation of a story we’ve all before been told many times, but it’s one that manages to fully succeed due to its painstaking attention to detail, its controlled and sturdy filmmaking, the intelligence and relatability of its writing, and the wholehearted commitment of its all-around outstanding cast. Anyone who has suffered directly from any form of addiction and/or been forced to watch a loved one suffer from it will be able to identify with this exceptionally powerful and carefully executed film.
Andrea Riseborough stars as Leslie. Under the opening credits, we see a series of still images that efficiently communicate her roller-coaster life of growing up, partying, motherhood, and surviving domestic violence. She then becomes a six-figure lottery winner and soon discovers the dark side of obtaining the American dream. Providing Leslie with an excess of time and resources, the win exacerbates her faults and she becomes hopelessly dependent upon alcohol, thus destroying her relationships with friends and family.
Six years after her win, Leslie has hit rock bottom. She is flat broke, homeless, and always drunk. She reaches out to her estranged son (Owen Teague) and further complicates their already damaged relationship. She then relies on the help of old friends (Allison Janney and Stephen Root), only to quickly betray their trust yet again. With no place left to go, she accepts the help of a kind motel manager (Marc Maron) who offers her a job and lodging. Knowing she no longer has a choice in the matter, Leslie goes through agonizing withdrawal, then struggles to maintain her fragile sobriety.
One of the most impressive things about To Leslie’s brilliant execution is the lack of ego from its behind-the-scenes team. Nothing about its filmmaking draws attention to itself or distracts from the film’s main priority: the study of its complex characters. The filmmaking is invisible, with cinematographer Larkin Seiple’s unobtrusive and observatory camera setups beautifully capturing the actors’ performances with disciplined minimalism. Editor Chris McCaleb consistently keeps the pacing steady so that even the slower moments never drag or disrupt the film’s momentum.
Screenwriter Ryan Binaco’s work is entirely authentic and devoid of cliches. His characters talk and behave like real people full of contradictions and duality, never once delivering self-important messages with on-the-nose dialogue or comical relief with obnoxiously forced cleverness. The screenplay lets its characters live and behave naturally according to the situations in which they find themselves. Director Michael Morris, best known for helming television episodes of Better Call Saul, Shameless, and House of Cards, understands that the primary strengths of the script lie in its narrative simplicity, emotional directness, and in its subtle-yet-astute observations on the human condition. He exhibits appropriate stylistic restraint throughout and wisely focuses on the emotional details of the film’s many intense and lifelike performances.
Every performance in To Leslie is worthy of high praise. Owen Teague showcases heartbreaking vulnerability as a young man who wants nothing more than to love and trust his mother. Teague brilliantly conveys the conflicted nature of his character’s predicament when he is forced to face the harsh reality that, despite his best efforts, his wholehearted desires are completely and painfully out of his control.
Allison Janney and Stephen Root portray characters who are so exhausted and angered by Leslie’s destructive behavior that they almost appear cruel and villainous at first glance. Their emotionally layered performances, along with the strength of Binaco’s writing, eventually communicate that their behavior is the result of the consistent disappointment and betrayal that comes with loving someone who suffers from intense addiction. Marc Maron brings inherent integrity and likability to a character that, in many ways, embodies the decency found at the core of To Leslie’s central themes of redemption and hope.
Andrea Riseborough’s portrayal of Leslie is jaggedly painful, fearlessly committed, and unflinchingly sincere. No matter how far she falls and how many people she carelessly hurts, you never hate Leslie because of the humanity injected into her by the actress portraying her. Riseborough’s performance makes it clear that her character is a human being in pain, suffering from a disease that is nearly impossible to defeat. You want to see Leslie succeed every bit as much as you fear for and expect her failure. It is a performance that has brought what little attention this low-budget and unfairly underseen film has received to date. Her controversial yet highly deserved Oscar nomination (due to a grassroots campaign that is unjustifiably no longer permitted) is the reason that I, and presumably many others, heard about and sought out this film in the first place. Without such an undeniably strong lead performance, the film simply would not have reached the soaring heights that it manages to reach.
To Leslie offers proof that the originality of a film’s storyline isn’t always as important as the strength of its execution. Though it contains familiar subject matter, the manner in which it is relayed is brimming with so much life and power that it can’t help but leave a highly indelible impact. To Leslie is yet another film about addiction, but it’s one whose exceptional quality makes it feel surprisingly unique and wholly unprecedented.
GRADE: A
