THE MOST HATED WOMAN IN AMERICA

Melissa Leo     Josh Lucas     Adam Scott     Brandon Mychal Smith     Vincent Kartheiser

Juno Temple     Peter Fonda     Sally Kirkland     Rory Cochrane     Alex Frost

     Hatred in America; it seems to be a running theme in its history.  It spans across racial/cultural (blacks and Native Americans), religious (witch trials), and political (Communism) realms from its earliest days.  This is a dramatization of one of those instances against an atheist, Madelyn Murray O’Hair, (Leo) that occurred in the 1990’s.  It should be said at the outset that most people saw the woman as difficult—and the film shows this very well. We see Madelyn first as a young woman living at home in a contentious relationship with her Baptist father.  Each would try to out-curse the other in expressing their antipathy toward the other.  We only see this when she is already grown, so do not know what circumstances brought her to such a rebellious attitude toward religion.

     She was apparently difficult to handle from childhood, and when the film opens to a family meal, we learn that she has had an illegitimate child and is pregnant with another.  Her explanation is that the fathers abandoned her, reaffirming her low opinion of men in general.  On the other hand, she appears to be devoted to her children, albeit in rather controlling and demanding ways, which comes back to haunt her later. 

     As O’Hair continues to fight for her children’s rights at school (their Constitutional right of free speech and religious freedom), she is successful in getting laws passed to that effect, but this is at great cost to her and her children.  Hatred is expressed toward them for years, including death threats, so when they go missing in 1995, no one seems to care.  Moreover, the police and some of Madelyn’s acquaintances are suspicious that she is simply repeating earlier stunts of purposely disappearing and turning up later. 

     This time is different, though, because, reasons her live-in assistant Roy Collier, her door is not locked, her dogs are left untended, her passports are found in a drawer, and breakfast is still on the table.  At this time, O’Hair has moved to San Antonio, Texas, and established the American Atheist Center, another move that brought more ill will from the predominantly Christian community. 

    When a local reporter, Jack Ferguson, hears about the situation, he contacts Billy, O’Hair’s estranged son, and Roy.  When he is persistent with his editor in getting permission to pursue the story and gather relevant data, he finds that rather than hatred, the motivation to kidnap O’Hair, her younger son, and granddaughter who lived with her, is greed, someone like David Waters wanting a share of donations to the Center.

     The film, written and directed by Tommy O’Haver, is an objective account of a significant, colorful figure in America’s history who garners little approbation for her political efforts, despite their far-reaching implications and the substance of which, the majority of contemporary Americans would ascribe to.  Although the film is a timely resurfacing of the issues, it may not garner much support for  O’Hair herself, partly because of the current religio-political divide, but in part simply because of her abrasive personality. The production could have been improved by giving us more insight into how she developed her atheistic beliefs early on in her life.

     In sum,The Most Hated Woman in America is a timely and helpful account of the woman behind two important landmarks in American history that reinforce our basic human rights.  Melissa Leo is up to her standard fine performance, along with an excellent supporting cast, particularly Josh Hartnett, Adam Scott, and Brandon Mychal Smith.

A timely reminder of how two of our basic rights were guaranteed by the untiring efforts of a complex, divisive figure in American history.

Grade:  B+                                    By Donna R. Copeland

BLACK MASS

Johnny Depp   Joel Edgerton   Benedict Cumberbatch   Kevin Bacon   Peter Sarsgaard   Adam Scott   Corey Stoll

          Black Mass:  an excellent film with a stunning cast that mesmerizes as the viewer witnesses one blatant crime after another.  It’s instructive in showing how a particular attachment formed in childhood renders the adult myopic in relation to someone who was his “savior” at a critical time.  I learned (from Wikipedia) that the title “Black Mass” is a metaphor for an unholy alliance, which I presume refers here to the FBI’s (particularly agent Connolly’s) alliance with a major criminal as an “informant.”

         Director Scott Cooper and the whole team deserve applause for just about every aspect of filmmaking:  The script (Mark Mallouk and Jez Butterworth, screenplay; Dick Lehr and Gerard O’Neill, book); the acting, particularly Depp, Edgerton, Cumberbatch, Bacon, Sarsgaard; makeup so well done I hardly recognized Depp; and cinematography (Masanobu Takayanagi) in artistic use of the camera.  The pacing made the film move in the best of storytelling technique.  Being unaware of the wealth of data about Jimmy “Whitey” Bulger’ criminal career, I expected much to be made of his years of escape, but the filmmakers made a wise choice in restricting most of the film to his criminal behavior and the FBI’s unwitting cooperation.  It was more than enough to fill a two-hour time slot.

            Black Mass serves as a study of personality and character; how people coming out of South Boston have developed a keen sense of loyalty, how one person goes in a criminal direction, another to political office, and still another to law enforcement.  Their background binds them together in a fascinating way.  Bulger is especially well fleshed out, so that we get a comprehensive picture of the complexities of his makeup (e.g., strict religious values in some areas, no conscience in others, and the knowledge and ability to use politeness and the concept of loyalty in evil intentions).

          The social commentary raises the question of how much one can change after coming from a humble background, at least one that makes moral compromise a part of everyday life, for which, I think, South Boston has a reputation.  This is seen in the Cumberbatch figure—Whitey Bulger’s brother—who apparently acquired a veneer of uprightness which brought him a political office and later a university presidency.  But when he had to make a compromise by communicating with his brother on the FBI’s most wanted list, he had to give up the presidency.

          I went reluctantly to the screening of Black Mass (I had seen the television documentary of Bulger’s capture), but was gratifyingly surprised by the substance of the film in terms of criminal behavior and the informed, comprehensive view of humans at their best and worst.

Go to Black Mass for its perceptive insight and understanding of human behavior.

Grade:  A                                    By Donna R. Copeland

THE OVERNIGHT

--> Adam Scott     Taylor Schilling     Jason Schwartzman     Judith Godreche

-->

 It’s not often that two families have an Overnight right after they meet, but Alex and Emily are thrilled when they meet another couple at the park soon after they have moved to a new city.  At first they’re a bit taken aback by the father of their son’s new playmate, who strides over to them dressed mostly in black, wearing sunglasses, holding one of the gummy worms their son had, and sounding a bit like a professor talking about good nutrition and emphasizing that his family is vegan.  Alex and Emily stand there stunned, until the man chuckles and says, “Just kidding.”  As they chat, he invites them to his house for pizza later on in the evening.  He is so welcoming, the new family decides to take a chance and accept his invitation.

            When Alex, Emily, and their son arrive at the hosts’ expensive hacienda, they’re a bit intimidated, but are made to feel at home very quickly.  The two families hit it off, and although there are a couple of things that A and E find a bit unusual, they’re also excited about the unusually talented K and C.  For instance, Kurt introduces them to his invention for filtering waste water (he points out it is from waste water only after Alex has drunk half a glass), then they insist the parents put their boys to bed so the couples can have adult time.  Kurt proceeds to light incense and play the piano softly in their son’s bedroom, and sure enough, the boys are quickly fast asleep.

            Patrick Brice, the writer/director, proceeds with his very subtle script, which involves tours of the house, Kurt’s paintings, a trip to town to replenish after-dinner drink supplies, swimming in the pool, and heart-to-heart conversations.  Some are rather probing, and Emily whispers to Alex, “This is California; maybe this is what dinner parties are about” and Alex states after an insightful conversation with Kurt, “I feel like I just gave birth to myself.”   We in the audience are drawn in just as smoothly as Alex and Emily are.  The conversations are interesting and oftentimes funny, and the lives of Kurt and Charlotte seem so novel, we enjoy the get-together right along with the characters—although it is true that part of our fun is in the increasing discomfort of Alex and Emily.  And I’m sure the uneasiness wasn’t limited to the characters.  The adult portion of the party is quickly brought to an end early the next morning when the two boys burst in upon the adults, ready for a new day. 

            By the end of the film, it does seem like Alex and Emily have opened Pandora’s Box, with maybe surprising results for Kurt and Charlotte as well, and it’s not entirely clear what the consequences will be.

            The script, direction, and acting are of high quality in The Overnight, but it is very explicit about adult matters, so the viewer should be aware of that aspect.

If you are up to a witty, intelligent, playful romp, you are likely to enjoy this film.

Grade:  A-                                    By Donna R. Copeland