Henry goes way too method for Todd Haynes' May December (Netflix Original).
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[00:00:10] Toyota has the one for you.
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[00:00:30] 94. Let's get to...
[00:00:34] May, December, which is a Netflix original.
[00:00:38] It's directed by Todd Haynes, stars Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore,
[00:00:43] Chris Tenzis, Charles Melton, and a few others.
[00:00:49] And the synopsis is,
[00:00:51] 20 years after their notorious tabloid romance gripped the nation,
[00:00:55] a married couple buckles under pressure when an actress arrives to do research for a film
[00:01:01] about their past.
[00:01:03] So this one is based off, at least inspired by, a true story where like a mid-30s woman
[00:01:11] got involved with a early teen boy, like 12, 13 years old, and it was just huge, of course,
[00:01:17] a huge tabloid thing.
[00:01:20] And didn't know anything about that going into this.
[00:01:23] I had no idea what this movie was about.
[00:01:26] All I knew it was done by Todd Haynes, who had done Carol, which I loved, and he had
[00:01:29] also done Dark Waters recently, which I really enjoyed.
[00:01:33] I think he's a very unique auteur director, so I was in for that.
[00:01:37] I love Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, so there's a lot of things that were drawing
[00:01:42] me in, and I heard very favorable things about it.
[00:01:45] And I've only seen it once.
[00:01:48] I think that it is a grower, not a shower.
[00:01:53] And I don't think I love the movie yet.
[00:01:56] I love Carol.
[00:01:57] I loved it the first time I saw it, and I think Dark Waters is maybe about on par with this
[00:02:02] one.
[00:02:02] Maybe I like Dark Waters a little more, which I think that one is very underrated, which
[00:02:07] deals with fracking and all that, and the great Mark Ruffalo film too.
[00:02:12] This one, it's hard to really talk about properly because it's so out there and it's
[00:02:18] so uncomfortable and bizarre, especially considering it happened in one way or the other to a certain
[00:02:24] degree.
[00:02:26] I think that above all, it's very well directed.
[00:02:30] Natalie Portman, Julianne Moore, and Charles Melton are incredible in it, like unbelievably
[00:02:36] good.
[00:02:37] And they're so... what's crazy is, and I'm glad I waited a little while to talk about
[00:02:42] it after having watched it because I feel like it's just been starting to hit me now.
[00:02:47] A lot of those performances by the leads, they seem fairly normal, like kind of plain,
[00:02:53] but it's really that they're so restrained and nuanced that I really feel like as cheesy
[00:02:58] as it sounds, it's like hitting me now, like a long time after I've watched it.
[00:03:02] And so I think they are fantastic.
[00:03:05] Todd Haynes always gets great performances.
[00:03:07] He's a very thoughtful filmmaker.
[00:03:10] The overall story, it does do a good job on, I guess one thing, speaking to tabloid
[00:03:17] news stories, but also deals with method acting and how at times toxic that can be and ridiculous.
[00:03:24] It can be where Natalie Portman has to learn everything about this.
[00:03:28] She has to do the movements, like every little thing about Julianne Moore who she's trying
[00:03:32] to portray in a movie.
[00:03:34] I have nothing against method acting, like Daniel Day-Lewis, for example, one of the
[00:03:38] best actors ever, in my opinion.
[00:03:40] He's a method actor for the most part from what I understand.
[00:03:42] But I don't think there's an issue with that necessarily, but it does do a good job
[00:03:47] of how some people, and we hear stories now of method quote unquote actors doing ridiculous
[00:03:53] things in order to stay in the character.
[00:03:55] And so I think it does a good job on that.
[00:03:59] So there are a lot of things going on.
[00:04:01] It's a very, very unsettling movie to watch.
[00:04:04] It almost is like a horror movie at times in terms of how characters are talking to each
[00:04:08] other.
[00:04:09] Julianne Moore is basically in denial about everything.
[00:04:13] She thinks, oh, well this is just my life.
[00:04:15] I got imprisoned for it, but we're happy now.
[00:04:19] And she's in this very state of obliviousness and dreamland essentially for the craziness
[00:04:24] of her relationship.
[00:04:27] And then Natalie Portman's character really kind of going over the edge trying to figure
[00:04:34] her out and you not knowing, all right, is she actually on board with Julianne Moore
[00:04:39] now?
[00:04:39] Is she wanting to be her actually or is she just acting?
[00:04:44] And then Charles Melton's character who's the husband of Julianne Moore being a mid-30s
[00:04:52] guy who has a teenage son who's I think about to go to college.
[00:04:56] And one scene that's great is when they're both sitting on the rooftop talking and he
[00:05:02] doesn't even really know how to talk to his son because he never really had a proper or
[00:05:08] normal teenage life.
[00:05:09] And now he's in this weird state where the son could almost be like his friend.
[00:05:14] And then he's the same age as Natalie Portman.
[00:05:17] So it's a very weird dynamic, but it all works fairly well.
[00:05:20] One thing though that I don't love is the score.
[00:05:24] Maybe I'll like it on rewatch.
[00:05:25] I understand it's meant to be very over-the-top melodramatic, that sort of thing.
[00:05:30] Did it totally work for me?
[00:05:32] I don't think it really needed to be there for it to get the message across, the genre
[00:05:37] and style across.
[00:05:38] I don't totally love it at this point.
[00:05:40] I know some people do.
[00:05:41] Maybe I'll get there.
[00:05:42] I'll let you know.
[00:05:43] But I think it's very worth watching.
[00:05:46] There's nothing else really like it.
[00:05:48] I think in terms of how it explores some of these very scandalous, ridiculous, bizarre,
[00:05:54] disturbing ideas and situations and amongst many other things.
[00:06:00] And above all, just watch it for the performances and the craft overall.
[00:06:03] Like, I don't think it's a masterpiece at this point, but it is still very, very unique.
[00:06:09] And Todd Haynes clearly again is a very refreshing, original, compelling voice.
[00:06:17] I mean, I guess you can call it art house in a way.
[00:06:20] I just wish that it had been released more theatrically rather than Netflix because I
[00:06:26] think he's better suited for theater experiences rather than on a streaming service, but is
[00:06:32] what it is.
[00:06:34] So that one is a light four out of five.
[00:06:40] Now's the time to start your next adventure behind the wheel of an exciting new Toyota
[00:06:45] Hybrid.
[00:06:47] With the largest lineup of hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electrified vehicles to choose
[00:06:51] from, Toyota has the one for you.
[00:06:53] Every new Toyota Hybrid comes with ToyotaCare two-year complimentary scheduled maintenance,
[00:06:58] an exclusive hybrid battery warranty, and Toyota's legendary quality and reliability.
[00:07:04] Visit your local Toyota dealer today.
[00:07:06] Toyota, let's go places.
[00:07:08] See your local Toyota dealer for hybrid battery warranty details.