Tully

2018 drama

Rating: 15/20

Plot: A mother of three, following the birth of the third one, battles postpartum depression. The acceptance of a "night nanny" helps her get back to feeling like herself.

Don't read this unless you've seen the movie. Actually, it's debatable whether or not you should read this even if you have seen the movie.

I didn't have this movie spoiled for me or anything, but I did know a little too much going in which helped me figure out something that I didn't want to figure out. It didn't really take away from my enjoyment of the movie or anything, but it would have been nice to see how this movie's surprises would have affected me had I not figured out what was going on too early. And I really hope you didn't read even that if you haven't seen the movie because I think knowing that there are surprises or twists in Tully is enough to mess it all up. I mean, that's all I basically knew going in.

This is the second collaboration with Diablo Cody and Jason Reitman with Charlize Theron, and I want to start with her. Once again, her performance shines in this thing. Watching this and Young Adult so closely together shows off her versatility. The movies have similar tones and a similar blend of drama, humor, and everyday darkness, but the roles are so much different. Here, Theron has put on fifty pounds to play this beleaguered mother of three, and there's such a physicality to her performance that makes it all seem so real. It's more than just putting on a lot of weight. It's how she carries that weight, and combined with how well she uses her eyes in this movie and other subtle or not-so-subtle movements in this, it really makes you believe in this character. Theron is an A-list movie star, but there weren't many moments in this where I was aware I was watching an A-list movie star playing the part of an exhausted and likely depressed mother. It really felt like I was watching an exhausted and likely depressed mother. Theron, maybe more than any other actress working right now, has this ability to transform herself into these different characters. She's staggering once again.

Once the titular nanny (and if those aren't the hottest words ever put together, I don't know what would be) enters the scene, Theron's character gradually changes. There's a newfound brightness and an exuberance. She nearly glows in some scenes, and a lot of that could have been the way she's being filmed by Reitman, but I think a lot of it is just how Theron lets this character move. I'd have to see the whole thing again to look for clues that there were fractures in this exuberance and brightness all along. This is definitely worth a rewatch to see what clues foreshadowed the big reveal at the end.

Tully is played by Mackenzie Davis who, once it's revealed who she actually is, doesn't seem quite exactly right for the part. But now that I've typed that, I don't know what I even mean because she seems perfect for the part. She's a cute little free-spirited spark plug of a human being. Once you do realize who she actually is, you wonder if things have moved too quickly. The twist seems a bit jolty and quick, and there's not really much time to process what's going on or what it means. But when I think about how the rest of the movie is paced, it feels about right. The opening sequence shows the struggles with Theron's character with just two children (one who has special needs) and a husband to worry about. When the baby is born, the postpartum depression, or maybe it's just pure exhaustion in the eyes of the audience at that point, is shown through a clever montage. Things move briskly in Tully, and while there's not a lot of time for development, it still tells its story well enough.

What this does a very good job of doing is helping a guy like me empathize with a mother like Marlo. I watched this in a theater all by myself, and I really connected with this character even though I'm not a woman and have never, as far as I know, been pregnant or given birth. My wife, on the other hand, has given birth four times. At least that I know about. And maybe it was because I saw some of myself in the aloof-but-halfheartedly-well-meaning husband character played by Ron Livingston, but I connected to this family and really felt like I was learning more about the connection between mothers and newborn babies and the emotions that some mothers are working through following birth. This was enlightening to me as a guy, and I bet my wife wishes this movie would have come out twenty-five years ago so that I would have more awareness and understanding about what was going on with her.

So that twist. Does it work? Part of me wonders if it was a cheap trick and if I'd like this movie nearly as much if I saw it a second time. I also wonder if too much is explained to viewers. There are times when I felt like I was being nursed along through the story and was ready for a sippy cup. The moments I appreciated most were the smaller ones that showed instead of told. There are plenty of those that would make any parent cringe with a specific memory or nod knowingly.