To Leslie: Andrea Riseborough's Left-Field Oscar Nom Turns Out To Be Well-Earned
By Thom Ernst
Rating: B
To Leslie appears to have risen out of nowhere. The unexpected attention given to this small independent film—a Best Actress nomination for its star, Andrea Riseborough has brought the film out of obscurity—should be a reason to celebrate.
To Leslie deserves to have an audience. It’s a solid, even though somewhat conventional film about a woman with a chronic impulse to make bad choices. And Riseborough in the title role is good. Really good. But her nomination comes with an unforeseen backlash.
Owen Teague and Andrea Riseborough in To Leslie
To those unaware, the controversy stems from a campaign spearheaded by the film’s director, Michael Morris, who engaged Hollywood A-listers (Gwyneth Paltrow has been named, as has Amy Adams, Susan Sarandon, and Edward Norton) to inundate social media praising Riseborough’s performance with specific mention of the Oscars.
That sounds relatively harmless, given that not only is To Leslie filled with all the good things like a solid script, confident direction, a stellar supporting cast, and a tour-de-force performance from its lead. But it’s also a low-budget movie without the means to fund a campaign through traditional channels like trade magazines and ads.
But rules and etiquette come into play and this 11th-hour nomination comes like a 7.9 magnitude celebrity earthquake to shake Oscar protocol.
Even though Riseborough remains the dark horse to win, it’s that she’s arrived at all that’s taken some in the industry aback. It is tough to squelch the din of controversy to regard Riseborough’s work without bias; to watch the movie and consider her performance without wondering if it is worthy enough to squeeze out serious Oscar contenders like Viola Davis (The Woman King) and Danielle Deadwyler (Till).
A shame because in any other situation, Riseborough’s would be heralded as delivering a virtuoso performance, and, indeed, one that is Oscar-worthy.
To Leslie is the story of a woman who wins big in a local lottery only to squander it on alcohol and drugs. Her saving grace is that, even at the bottom, Leslie is not bereft of charm and good nature. She is aware of the effect alcohol and drugs have on her life, and on those she loves (and who love her).
When confronted with her failings, she replies, “I’m sick.” The admission, said without any evidence of self-pity, reveals a long stretch of struggle, of truthful (if not useful) jargon and qualified helplessness.
To Leslie is the first theatrical feature for Morris following a stellar television career that includes episodes of Better Call Saul and Locke & Keye. The story (and screenplay) by Ryan Binaco is based, we are told, on Binaco’s mother.
But Binaco is not saying just how much of his mother is in Leslie. It’s a curious side-step given the breadth of Leslie’s struggles and her ultimate determination to rid herself of her demons.
Regardless of facts, Leslie is a story of one person’s struggle to triumph over crisis. That could be a tedious conceit, but Morris transforms the film beyond the humdrum trappings of a recovery story. Not that there aren’t tropes; seedy motels, humiliating drunken advances, and a liberal amount of bad behaviour. But the tropes are infused with a stark reality that defies worn observations and an instinct to glamourize the fallen and the destitute.
Riseborough might be the primary reason To Leslie works—and indeed her performance is often better than the film—but she is not the sole reason. In supporting roles, Allison Janney, Stephen Root, Owen Teague, and Marc Maron all step up with notable performances.
The controversy around the handling of Riseborough’s nomination is not without justification, particularly if it results in a less diverse (and deserving) Oscar category. But it’s a shame if controversy overshadows the efforts of the filmmakers, and the success of its star.
To Leslie is directed by Michael Morris and stars Andrea Riseborough, Allison Janney, Marc Maron, Stephen Root and Owen Teague. To Leslie is available to stream on Super Channel starting Wednesday, March 1. It also plays theatrically Wednesday, March 1 in a special screening in Toronto at the TIFF Bell Lightbox.