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Dome Pondering Movie Review: To Leslie (2022)


What is it about? 

A mother wins the lottery and squanders it immediately leaving behind lots of broken relationships and trust due to alcoholism. Years later, she fights to win back those relationships and trust, and maybe even chase some dreams. 

Who is in it?

Andrea Riseborough - Leslie 

Marc Maron - Sweeney

Allison Janney - Nancy

Favorite Scene: 

For the first time in a long time, Leslie is having fun in the town, but her past and reputation quickly catch up to her as Nancy and her crew are there. Altercations rise between her old life and new as she gets caught in the middle of it all. 

Favorite Quote: 

James: Animals are meant to be in the wild, and they put 'em in cages. How'd you like it if people stood around watching you suffer?
Leslie: They do!

---

Sweeney: You're living, right? I'm sorry it ain't a fairytale. We all should have done things differently. But you're what's wrong with you. Not anyone else.

Review: 

To Leslie is a great film. I've seen many movies depicting addiction and the perils it brings, but there is something about this film that draws it a bit closer to the darkness and in many realities, that it presents and lives in. Throughout the entire film, we continuously see and feel like Leslie is on the brink of something that will either be catastrophic or triumphant. I found myself pulling for Leslie in moments, and in others, quite frankly, satisfied that "she got what she deserved". The film is beautiful in that way of exposing the feelings as well as laying out the complexity of it all. 

There were some softer, more-predictable moments and cliches, that lends to the film, but it doesn't take away from the character or the plot. A lot of To Leslie feels raw. The characters are normal, middle-class individuals. The struggle is real. The comeback is real. The heartbreak and the circumstances are understandable - from many perspectives. 

Of course, you have to give Andrea Riseborough all the flowers in the lead role. Absolutely terrific. 

This is a tremendous film that will give you so many feelings and will give you a new outlook on addiction and the many people it affects around it. 

Grade: 4/5
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