Vera Drake

Grade: A

Film auteur Mike Leigh has taken one of the most politically-charged issues of our time and created a film stunning in its subtlety, simplicity, and grace. Imelda Staunton gives the performance of a distinguished lifetime as a dowdy, ever-humming, kind-hearted wife and mother who also “helps young women” terminate their pregnancies. While there is no ambiguity as to the filmmaker’s perspective on a woman’s right to choose (the film is even dedicated to his physician father and midwife mother), Leigh tells his story through richly textured characters of sometimes undefined yet deeply heartfelt motivations. There is no moral certainty or superiority. No soapboxes. No political diatribes. Understated yet detailed. Straightforward yet complex. Partisan yet open-armed welcoming of thought and interpretation. This is easily one of the finest works of the year.

It is the early 1950’s in London. Abortion is legal for women of means who can afford the 150 pounds to receive psychiatric dispensation and a clean hospital bed free from judgment. Meanwhile, Vera takes care of her husband and two children. She cuddles in bed with her beloved partner, warming his icy feet with hers. She welcomes friends into her home. Searches for a bridegroom for her daughter. Tends to her bedridden mother. Takes delight in meals with her extended family around a tight table space. Goes to rich women’s homes and cleans them to make ends meet. Goes to poor women’s homes and performs abortions. She is a caregiver. There is no distinction between her taking care of her family and her taking care of these women. It is the right thing to do. It is her nature.

Heroic and heartbreaking, we are eavesdropping. A company of mesmerizing actors creates a real family. They have spent their lives together. How they relate to one another, play and relax together, eat together, how they support, judge and care for each other is the true heart of this masterful work. Filmed with poignant decorum, there is little music to emphasize how we should be feeling, few declarations to tell us what we should believe. The story is told in Vera’s eyes, in Vera’s humble tone of voice, in Vera putting on a pot of tea. We see a woman’s heart bursting forth, in the simple yet uncompromising way she lives her life. A Rembrandt.

More Movie Info: http://imdb.com/title/tt0383694/